tilt  mohgicut 

PRINCETON,  N.  J 


Division 

Section.. 


XTPo  O 


S/W/. 


Number , 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


Egyptian  Archeology 


BY 

G.  MASPERO,  D.C.L.,  Oxon., 

MEMBER  OF  THE  INSTITUTE  OF  FRANCE  ; PROFESSOR  AT  THE  COLLEGE  DE  FRANCE 
HONORARY  FELLOW  OF  QUEEN’S  COLLEGE,  OXFORD*, 
VICE-PRESIDENT  OF  THE  EGYPT  EXPLORATION  FUND, 

ETC.,  ETC.,  ETC. 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  FRENCH 


BY 

AMELIA  B.  EDWARDS. 


Eolith  HTtno  gjwnhvtb  anti  ^lincto-ninc  illustrations. 


New  York  : G.  P.  PUTNAM’S  SONS. 
London:  H.  GREVEL  & CO. 
1887. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2016 


https://archive.org/details/egyptianarchaeolOOmasp 


TRANSLATOR’S  PREFACE. 


O put  this  book  into  English,  and  thus 


to  hand  it  on  to  thousands  who  might 
not  otherwise  have  enjoyed  it,  has  been 
to  me  a very  congenial  and  interesting  task. 
It  would  be  difficult,  I imagine,  to  point  to 
any  work  of  its  scope  and  character  which 
is  better  calculated  to  give  lasting  delight 
to  all  classes  of  readers.  For  the  skilled 
archaeologist,  its  pages  contain  not  only  new 
facts,  but  new  views  and  new  interpretations  ; 
while  to  those  who  know  little,  or  perhaps 
nothing,  of  the  subjects  under  discussion,  it 
will  open  a fresh  and  fascinating  field  of  study. 
It  is  not  enough  to  say  that  a handbook  of 
Egyptian  Archaeology  was  much  needed,  and 
that  Professor  Maspero  has  given  us  exactly 
what  we  required.  He  has  done  much  more 
than  this.  He  has  given  us  a picturesque, 
vivacious,  and  highly  original  volume,  as 


b 


VI 


translator’s  preface. 


delightful  as  if  it  were  not  learned,  and  as 
instructive  as  if  it  were  dull. 

As  regards  the  practical  side  of  Archaeology, 
it  ought  to  be  unnecessary  to  point  out  that  its 
usefulness  is  strictly  parallel  with  the  usefulness 
of  public  museums.  To  collect  and  exhibit 
objects  of  ancient  art  and  industry  is  worse 
than  idle  if  we  do  not  also  endeavour  to  dis- 
seminate some  knowledge  of  the  history  of 
those  arts  and  industries,  and  of  the  processes 
employed  by  the  artists  and  craftsmen  of  the 
past.  Archaeology,  no  less  than  love,  “ adds  a 
precious  seeing  to  the  eye  ” ; and  without  that 
gain  of  mental  sight,  the  treasures  of  our  public 
collections  are  regarded  by  the  general  visitor 
as  mere  “curiosities'’ — flat  and  stale  for  the 
most  part,  and  wholly  unprofitable. 

I am  much  indebted  to  Mr.  W.  M.  Flinders 
Petrie,  author  ol  The  Pyramids  and  Temples 
of  Gizch,  for  kindly  translating  the  section  on 
“ Pyramids,”  which  is  entirely  from  his  pen.  I 
have  also  to  thank  him  for  many  valuable  notes 
on  subjects  dealt  with  in  the  first  three  chapters. 
To  avoid  confusion,  I have  numbered  these 
notes,  and  placed  them  at  the  end  of  the 
volume. 


translator’s  preface.  vii 

My  acknowledgments  are  likewise  due  to 
Professor  Maspero  for  the  care  with  which  he 
has  read  the  proof-sheets  of  this  version  of  his 
work.  In  departing  from  his  system  of  ortho- 
graphy (and  that  of  Mr.  Petrie)  I have  been 
solely  guided  by  the  necessities  of  English 
readers.  I foresee  that  Egyptian  A r chaw  logy 
will  henceforth  be  the  inseparable  companion 
of  all  English-speaking  travellers  who  visit 
the  Valley  of  the  Nile;  and  for  that  reason  I 
have  adopted  the  spelling  of  Egyptian  proper 
names  as  given  by  the  author  of  “ Murray’s 
Handbook  for  Egypt.” 

Touching  my  own  share  in  the  present 
volume,  I will  only  say  that  I have  tried  to 
present  Professor  Maspero’s  inimitable  French 
in  the  form  of  readable  English,  rather  than 
in  a strictly  word-for-word  translation  ; and 
that  with  the  hope  of  still  further  extending 
the  usefulness  of  the  book,  I have  added  some 
foot-note  references. 

AMELIA  B.  EDWARDS. 

Westbury-on-Trym, 

August,  i S87. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

PREFACE,  By  the  Translator v 

CHAPTER  I. 

ARCHITECTURE— CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 

§ i.  Houses:— Bricks  and  Brickmaking — Foundations — Materials 

— Private  Dwellings — Decoration  .....  2 

§ 2.  Fortresses: — Walls — Gates — Bastions — Salients — Migdols, 

etc.  . . . . . . . . . .16 

§ 3.  Public  Works  : — Roads — Bridges — Storehouses — Canals 

— Lake  Moeris — Dams — Reservoirs — Quarries  . . 30 

CHAPTER  II. 

RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 

§ 1.  Materials  and  Principles  of  Construction  : — 
Materials  of  Temples  -Foundations  of  Temples — Sizes 
of  Blocks — Mortars — Mode  of  hoisting  Blocks— Defective 
Mason’s  Work — Walls  — Pavements  — Vaultings  — Sup- 
ports— Pillars  and  Columns  — Capitals  — Lotus-flower 
Capitals — Lotus-bud  Capitals — Hathor-headed  Capitals  . 43 

§ 2.  Temples  : — Temple  of  the  Sphinx — Temple  of  Elephantine 
—Temple  at  El  Kab — Temple  of  Ivhons — Management 
of  Light — Levels — Crypts — Temple  of  Karnak — Temple 
of  Luxor — Philas — The  Speos,  or  Grotto-temple — Speos 
of  Horemheb — Rock-cut  Temples  of  Aboo  Sirnbel  — 
Temple  of  Dayr-el-Baharee  — Temple  of  Abydos  — 
Sphinxes — Crio-sphinxes  . . . . . .61 


X 


CONTENTS. 


PACE 

§ 3.  Decoration  : — Principles  of  Decoration  The  Temple  a 
Symbolic  Representation  of  the  World — Decoration  of  Parts 
nearest  the  Ground — Dadoes-  Bases  of  Columns — Decora- 
tion of  Ceilings — Decoration  of  Architraves—  Decoration  of 
Wall-surfaces — Magical  Virtues  of  Decoration — Decoration 
of  Pylons — Statues— Obelisks — Libation-tables — Altars  — 
Shrines — Sacred  Boats — Animated  Statues  of  Deities  . 86 

CHAPTER  III. 

TOMBS. 

§ 1.  Mastabas  : — Construction  of  the  Mastaba — The  Door  of  the 
Living,  and  the  L'oor  of  the  Dead  The  Chapel — Wall 
Decorations — The  Double  and  his  Needs — The  Serdab — - 
The  Portrait  Statues — The  Sepulchral  Chamber  . .110 

§ 2.  Pyramids  Plan  of  the  Pyramid  comprises  three  leading 
Features  of  the  Mastaba — Materials  of  Pyramids — Orient- 
ation— Pyramid  of  Khoofoo — Pyramids  of  Khafra  and 
Menkara — Step-pyramid  of  Sakkarah — Pyramid  of  U nas — 
Decoration  of  Pyramid  of  Unas — Group  of  Dashoor — 
Pyramid  of  Meydoom  . . . . . . .126 

§3.  Tombs  of  the  Theban  Empire;  The  Catacombs:— 
Pyramid-mastabas  of  Abydos  - Pyramid-mastabas  of 
Drah  Aboo’l  Neggah — Rock-cut  tombs  of  Beni  Hassan 
and  Syene — Rock-cut  tombs  of  Siout — Wall-decoration  of 
Theban  Catacombs — Tombs  of  the  Kings  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty  at  Thebes — Valley  of  the  Tombs  of  the  Kings — 

Royal  Catacombs — Tomb  of  Seti  I. — Wall-decorations 
of  Royal  Catacombs — Funerary  Furniture  of  Catacombs — 
Ushabti — Amulets — Common  Graves  of  the  Poor  . .140 

CHAPTER  IV. 

PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 

§ 1.  Design  and  Composition  : — Supposed  Canon  of  Propor- 
tion— Drawing  Materials — Sketches — Illustrations  to  the 
Book  of  the  Dead — Conventional  Treatment  of  Animals, 
and  of  Human  Figures — -Naturalistic  Treatment — Composi- 
tion— Grouping — Wall-paintings  of  Tombs — A Funerary 
Feast — A Domestic  Scene — Military  Subjects — Perspec- 
tive— Parallel  between  a Wall-painting  in  a Tomb  at 
Sakkarah  and  the  Mosaic  of  Palestrina  . . . .164 


CONTEXTS. 


XI 


§ 2.  Technical  Processes  : — The  Preparation  of  Surfaces — 
Outline  — Sculptors’  Tools — Iron  and  Bronze  Tools — 
Impurity  of  Iron — Methods  of  Instruction  in  Sculpture — 
Models — Methods  of  cutting  Various  Stones — Polish — 
Painted  Sculptures  — Pigments— Conventional  Scale  of 
Colour — Relation  of  Painting  to  Sculpture  in  Ancient 
Egypt 187 

§ 3.  Works  of  Art  : — The  Great  Sphinx — Art  of  the  Memphite 
School  — Wood-panels  of  Hosi — Funerary  Statues — 

The  Portrait-statue  and  the  Double — Chefs  d'ceuvre  of 
the  Memphite  School — The  Cross-legged  Scribe  — Diorite 
Statue  of  Khafra — The  Wooden  Man  of  Boulak — The 
Kneeling  Scribe — The  Dwarf  Khnumhotep — Rahotep  and 
Nefert — Royal  Statues  of  the  Twelfth  Dynasty — Hyksos 
Sphinxes  of  Tanis — Theban  School  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty — Colossi  of  Amenhotep  III. — New  School  of 
Tell-el-Amama — Its  Superior  Grace  and  Truth — Works 
of  Horemheb — School  of  the  Nineteenth  Dynasty — Colossi 
of  Rameses  II. — Decadence  of  Art  begins  with  Menepthah 
— Ethiopian  Renaissance  - Saite  Renaissance  — The 
Hippopotamus  of  Xitocris — The  Attitudes  of  Statues — 

Sai'te  Innovations — Greek  Influence  upon  Egyptian  Art 
— The  Ptolemaic  and  Roman  Periods — The  School  of 
Meroe — Extinction  of  Egyptian  Art  ....  201 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 

§ 1.  Stone,  Clay,  and  Glass: — Precious  Stones — Lapidary 
Art  — Beads  and  Amulets  — Scarabtei  — Statuettes  — • 
Libation  Tables  —Perfume  Vases — Kohl-pots — Potter}- — 

Clay — Glazes  — Red  and  Painted  Wares — Ushabti  — 
Funerary  Cones — Painted  Vases — “Canopic”  Vases — 

Clay  Sarcophagi — Glass — Its  Chemical  Constituents — 

Clear  Glass — Coloured  Glass — Imitations  of  Precious 
Stones  in  Glass — Glass  Mosaics — Miniature  Objects  in 
Coloured  Glass — Glass  Amulets — Coloured  Glass  Vases 
of  the  Style  called  the  “False  Murrhine” — Enamels — 

The  Theban  Blue — The  Enamels  of  Tell-el-Amama — 
Enamelled  Ushabti  of  Amen  Ptahmes — Enamelled  Tiles 
of  the  Step-pyramid  at  Sakkarah — Enamelled  Tiles  of 
Tell-el-Yahoodeh 


240 


CONTENTS. 


xii 


PACE 

§ 2.  Wood,  Ivory,  Leather,  and  Textile  Fabrics  : — Bone 
and  Ivory — Elephant  Tusks — Dyed  Ivory — Egyptian 
Woods — Wooden  Statuettes — Statuette  of  Hori— Statuette 
of  Na'f — Wooden  T oilet  Ornaments — Perfume  and  U nguent 
Spoons — Furniture — Chests  and  Coffers — Mummy-cases — - 
Wooden  Effigies  on  Mummy  Cases — Huge  Outer  Cases  of 
Ahmes  Nefertari  and  Aah-hotep — Funerary  Furniture — 

Beds — Canopies  — Sledges — Chairs — Stools  — Thrones — 
Woven  Textures — Methods  of  Weaving— Leather — Breast- 
bands  of  Mummies— Patchwork  Canopy  in  Coloured 
Leather  of  Princess  Isi-em-kheb — Embroideries — Muslins 
— Celebrated  Textiles  of  Alexandria  ....  266 

§ 3.  Metals -.—Iron — I.ead — Bronze — Constituents  of  Egyptian 
Bronze — Domestic  Utensils  in  Bronze — Mirrors — Scissors 
— Bronze  Statuettes — The  Strogonoff  Bronze — The  Posno 
Bronzes — The  Lion  of  Apries — Gilding — Gold-plating — 
Gold-leaf — Statues  and  Statuettes  of  Precious  Metals— 

The  Silver  and  Golden  Cups  of  General  Tahuti — The 
Silver  Vases  of  Thmuis — Silver  Plate — Goldsmith’s  Work 
— Richness  of  Patterns — Jewellery — Funerary  Jewellery 
— Rings  — Seal-rings — Chains  — The  Jewels  of  Queen 
Aahhotep — The  Ring  of  Rameses  II. — The  Ear-rings  of 


Rameses  IX. — The  Bracelet  of  Prince  Psar — Conclusion  . 296 

Notes 325 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ARCHITECTURE-CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 

Archeologists,  when  visiting  Egypt,  have  so  concen- 
trated their  attention  upon  temples  and  tombs,  that  not 
one  has  devoted  himself  to  a careful  examination  of 
the  existing  remains  of  private  dwellings  and  military 
buildings.  Few  countries,  nevertheless,  have  pre- 
served so  many  relics  of  their  ancient  civil  architecture. 
Setting  aside  towns  of  Roman  or  Byzantine  date,  such 
as  are  found  almost  intact  at  Koft  (Coptos),  at  Kom 
Ombo,  and  at  El-Agandeeyeh,  one-half  at  least  of  ancient 
Thebes  still  exists  on  the  east  and  south  of  Karnak.  The 
site  of  Memphis  is  covered  with  mounds,  some  of  which 
are  from  fifty  to  sixty  feet  in  height,  each  containing  a 
core  of  houses  in  good  preservation.  At  Tell-el-Mask- 
hutah,  the  granaries  of  Pithom  are  yet  standing ; and 
at  San  (Tanis)  and  Tell  Basta  (Bubastis),  the  Ptolemaic 
and  Sa'itic  cities  contain  quarters  of  which  a plan  might 
yet  be  made  (Note  i).  I here  refer  to  none  save 
well-known  places  ; but  in  many  localities  which  escape 
the  traveller’s  notice,  there  may  be  seen  ruins  of  private 
dwellings  which  date  back  to  the  age  of  the  Ramessides, 
or  to  perhaps  a still  earlier  period.  As  regards  for- 


I 


2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


tresses,  there  are  two  in  the  town  of  Abydos  alone, 
one  of  which  is  at  least  contemporary  with  the  Sixth 
Dynasty  ; while  the  ramparts  of  El  Kab,  of  Kom-el- 
Ahmar,  of  El-Hibeh,*  and  of  Dakkeh,  as  well  as  part 
of  the  fortifications  of  Thebes,  are  still  standing,  and 
await  the  architect  who  shall  deign  to  make  them  an 
object  of  serious  study. 

I. — Private  Dwellings. 

The  soil  of  Egypt,  periodically  washed  by  the  in- 
undation, is  a black,  compact,  homogeneous  clay, 
which  becomes  of  stony  hardness  when  dry.  From 
immemorial  time,  the  fellaheen  have  used  it  for  the 
construction  of  their  houses.  The  hut  of  the  poorest 
peasant  is  a mere  rudely-shaped  mass  of  this  clay.  A 
rectangular  space,  some  eight  or  ten  feet  in  width,  b}r 
perhaps  sixteen  or  eighteen  feet  in  length,  is  enclosed 
in  a wickerwork  of  palm-branches,  coated  on  both  sides 
with  a layer  of  mud.  As  this  coating  cracks  in  the 
drying,  the  fissures  are  filled  in,  and  more  coats  of  mud 
are  daubed  on  until  the  walls  attain  a thickness  of  from 
four  inches  to  a foot.  Finally,  the  whole  is  roofed  over 
with  palm-branches  and  straw,  the  top  being  covered 
in  with  a thin  layer  of  beaten  earth.  The  height  varies. 
In  most  huts,  the  ceiling  is  so  low  that  to  rise  suddenly 
is  dangerous  both  to  one’s  head  and  to  the  structure, 
while  in  others  the  roof  is  six  or  seven  feet  from  the 
floor.  Windows,  of  course,  there  are  none.  Sometimes 
a hole  is  left  in  the  middle  of  the  roof  to  let  the  smoke 
out ; but  this  is  a refinement  undreamed  of  by  many. 

* Near  Feshun,  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  Nile  ; called  in  Murray’s 
Guide,  El-Haybeh. 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


3 


At  the  first  glance,  it  is  not  always  easy  to  dis- 
tinguish between  these  huts  of  wattle  and  daub  and 
those  built  with  crude  bricks.  The  ordinary  Egyptian 
brick  is  a mere  oblong  block  of  mud  mixed  with  chopped 
straw  and  a little  sand,  and  dried  in  the  sun.  At  a 
spot  where  they  are  about  to  build,  one  man  is  told  off 
to  break  up  the  ground  ; others  carry  the  clods,  and 
pile  them  in  a heap,  while  others  again  mix  them  with 
water,  knead  the  clay  with  their  feet,  and  reduce  it  to 
a homogeneous  paste.  This  paste,  when  sufficiently 
worked  (Note  2),  is  pressed  by  the  head  workman 


in  moulds  made  of  hard  wood,  while  an  assistant 
carries  away  the  bricks  as  fast  as  they  are  shaped, 
and  lays  them  out  in  rows  at  a little  distance  apart, 
to  dry  in  the  sun  (fig.  1).  A careful  brickmaker  will 
leave  them  thus  for  half  a day,  or  even  for  a whole 
day ; after  which  the  bricks  are  piled  in  stacks  in  such 
wise  that  the  air  can  circulate  freely  among  them  ; and 
so  they  remain  for  a week  or  two  before  they  are  used. 
More  frequently,  however,  they  are  exposed  for  only 
a few  hours  to  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and  the  building 
is  begun  while  they  are  yet  damp.  The  mud,  how- 
ever, is  so  tenacious  that,  notwithstanding  this  careless- 
ness, they  are  not  readily  put  out  of  shape.  The  outer 


4 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


faces  of  the  bricks  become  disintegrated  by  the  action 
of  the  weather,  but  those  in  the  inner  part  of  the  wall 
remain  intact,  and  are  still  separable.  A good  modern 
workman  will  easily  mould  a thousand  bricks  a day, 
and  after  a week’s  practice  he  may  turn  out  1,200,  1,500, 
or  even  1,800.  The  ancient  workmen,  whose  appliances 
in  no  wise  differed  from  those  of  the  present  day,  pro- 
duced equally  satisfactory  results.  The  dimensions  they 
generally  adopted  were  87  x 4-3  x 5-5  inches  for 
ordinary  bricks,  or  iyo  x 7-1  x 57  for  a larger  size 
(Note  3),  though  both  larger  and  smaller  are  often  met 
with  in  the  ruins.  Bricks  issued  from  the  royal  work- 
shops were  sometimes  stamped  with  the  cartouches  of 
the  reigning  monarch  ; while  those  made  by  private 
factories  bore  on  the  side  a trade  mark  in  red  ochre, 
a squeeze  of  the  moulder’s  lingers,  or  the  stamp  of  the 
maker.  By  far  the  greater  number  have,  however,  no 
distinctive  mark.  Burnt  bricks  were  not  often  used 
before  the  Roman  period  (Note  4),  nor  tiles,  either 
flat  or  curved.  Glazed  bricks  appear  to  have  been  the 
fashion  in  the  Delta.  The  finest  specimen  that  I have 
seen,  namely,  one  in  the  Boulak  Museum,  is  inscribed 
in  black  ink  with  the  cartouches  of  Rameses  III.  The 
glaze  of  this  brick  is  green,  but  other  fragments  are 
coloured  blue,  red,  yellow,  or  white. 

The  nature  of  the  soil  does  not  allow  of  deep  founda- 
tions. It  consists  of  a thin  bed  of  made  earth,  which, 
except  in  large  towns,  never  reaches  any  degree  of 
thickness ; below  this  comes  a very  dense  humus,  per- 
meated by  slender  veins  of  sand  ; and  below  this  again 
— at  the  level  of  infiltration — comes  a bed  of  mud,  more 
or  less  soft,  according  to  the  season.  The  native  builders 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


5 


of  the  present  day  are  content  to  remove  only  the  made 
earth,  and  lay  their  foundations  on  the  primeval  soil;  or, 
if  that  lies  too  deep,  they  stop  at  a yard  or  so  below  the 
surface.  The  old  Egyptians  did  likewise  ; and  I have 
never  seen  any  ancient  house  of  which  the  foundations 
were  more  than  four  feet  deep.  Even  this  is  ex- 
ceptional, the  depth  in  most  cases  being  not  more  than 
two  feet.  They  very  often  did  not  trouble  themselves 
to  cut  trenches  at  all ; they  merely  levelled  the  space 
intended  to  be  covered,  and,  having  probably  watered 
it  to  settle  the  soil,  they  at  once  laid  the  bricks  upon 
the  surface.  When  the  house  was  finished,  the  scraps  of 
mortar,  the  broken  bricks,  and  all  the  accumulated  refuse 
of  the  work,  made  a bed  of  eight  inches  or  a foot  in 
depth,  and  the  base  of  the  wall  thus  buried  served  instead 
of  a foundation.  When  the  new  house  rose  on  the 
ruins  of  an  older  one  decayed  by  time  or  ruined  by 
accident,  the  builders  did  not  even  take  the  trouble  to 
raze  the  old  walls  to  the  ground.  Levelling  the  surface 
of  the  ruins,  they  built  upon  them  at  a level  a few  feet 
higher  than  before  : thus  each  town  stands  upon  one 
or  several  artificial  mounds,  the  tops  of  which  not  un- 
frequently  rise  to  a height  of  from  sixty  to  eighty  feet 
above  the  surrounding  country.  The  Greek  historians 
attributed  these  artificial  mounds  to  the  wisdom  of  the 
kings,  and  especially  to  Sesostris,  who,  as  they  sup- 
posed, wished  to  raise  the  towns  above  the  inundation. 
Some  modern  writers  have  even  described  the  process, 
which  they  explain  thus  : — A cellular  framework  of 
brick  walls,  like  a huge  chess-board,  formed  the  sub- 
structure, the  cells  being  next  filled  in  with  earth,  and 
the  houses  built  upon  this  immense  platform  (Note  5). 


6 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


But  where  I have  excavated,  especially  at  Thebes,  I 
have  never  found  anything  answering  to  this  conception. 
The  intersecting  walls  which  one  finds  beneath  the  later 
houses  are  nothing  but  the  ruins  of  older  dwellings, 
which  in  turn  rest  on  others  still  older.  The  slightness 
of  the  foundations  did  not  prevent  the  builders  from 
boldly  running  up  quite  lofty  structures.  In  the  ruins 
of  Memphis,  I have  observed  walls  still  standing  from 

thirty  to  forty  feet  in  height. 
The  builders  took  no  pre- 
caution beyond  enlarging  the 
base  .of  the  wall,  and  vaulting 
the  floors  (fig.  2).  The  thick- 
ness of  an  ordinary  wall  was 
about  sixteen  inches  for  a low 
house  ; but  for  one  of  several 
storeys,  it  was  increased  to 
three  or  four  feet.  Large 
beams,  embedded  here  and 
there  in  the  brickwork  or 
masonry,  bound  the  whole 
together,  and  strengthened  the 
structure.  The  ground  floor  was  also  frequently  built 
with  dressed  stones,  while  the  upper  parts  were  of 
brick.  The  limestone  of  the  neighbouring  hills  was 
the  stone  commonly  used  for  such  purposes.  The 
fragments  of  sandstone,  granite,  and  alabaster,  which 
are  often  found  mixed  in  with  it,  are  generally  from 
some  ruined  temple ; the  ancient  Egyptians  having 
pulled  their  neglected  monuments  to  pieces  quite  as 
unscrupulously  as  do  their  modern  successors. 

The  lower  classes  lived  in  mere  huts  which,  though 


Fig.  2. — Ancient  house  with 
vaulted  floors,  against  the 
northern  wall  of  the  great 
temple  of  Medinet-Haboo. 


ARCHITECTURE  — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


7 


built  of  bricks,  were  no  better  than  those  of  the 
present  fellaheen.  At  Karnak,  in  the  Pharaonic  town  ; 
at  Kom  Ombo,  in  the  Roman  town  ; and  at  Medinet 
Haboo,  in  the  Coptic  town,  the  houses  in  the  poorer 
quarters  have  seldom  more  than  twelve 
or  sixteen  feet  of  frontage.  They  con- 
sist of  a ground  floor,  with  sometimes 
one  or  two  living-rooms  above.  The 
middle  class  folk,  as  shopkeepers, 
sub-officials,  and  foremen,  were  better 
housed.  Their  dwellings  were  fre- 
quently separated  from  the  street  by 
a narrow  court,  beyond  which  the 
rooms  were  ranged  on  either  side  of 
a long  passage  (fig.  3).  More  fre- 
quently, the  court  was  surrounded  on  three  sides  by 
chambers  (fig.  4)  ; and  yet  oftener,  the  house  fronted 
close  upon  the  street.  In  the  latter  case,  the  facade 
consisted  of  a high  wall,  white- 
washed or  painted,  and  sur- 
mounted by  a cornice.  The 
door  was  the  only  opening,  save 
perhaps  a few  small  windows 
pierced  at  irregular  intervals 
(fig.  5).  Even  in  unpretentious 
houses,  the  door  was  often  made 
of  stone.  The  doorposts  projected  slightly  beyond  the 
surface  of  the  wall,  and  the  lintel  supported  a painted  or 
sculptured  cornice.  Having  crossed  the  threshold,  one 
passed  successively  through  two  dimly-lighted  entrance 
chambers,  the  second  of  which  opened  into  the  central 
court  (fig.  6) ; the  ground-floor  offices  were  used  as 


Fig.  4. 


8 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Fig-  5. 


-Fagade  of  a house  towards 
the  street. 


stabling  for  donkeys  or  cattle,  and  as  storerooms  for 
grain  and  provisions,  as  well  as  for  cellarage  and 
kitchens.  Wherever  the  upper  floors  still  remain 

standing,  they  reproduce 
the  ground-floor  plan 
with  scarcely  any  dif- 
ferences. These  upper 
rooms  were  reached  by 
an  outside  staircase,  steep 
and  narrow  and  divided 
at  short  intervals  by  small 
square  landings.  The 
rooms  were  oblong,  and 
were  lighted  only  from 
the  doorway ; when  it  was 
decided  to  open  windows 
on  the  street,  they  were 
mere  air-holes  near  the  ceiling,  pierced  without  regu- 
larity or  symmetry,  fitted  with 
a lattice  of  wooden  cross  bars, 
and  secured  by  wooden  shut- 
ters. The  floors  were  bricked 
or  paved,  or  consisted  still  more 
frequently  of  merely  a layer  of 
rammed  earth.  The  walls  were 
whitewashed,  and  occasionally 
painted  with  bright  colours. 

The  roof  was  flat,  and  made 

probably,  as  at  the  present  day,  of  closely  laid  rows 
of  palm-branches  covered  with  a coating  of  mud  thick 
enough  to  withstand  the  effects  of  rain.  Sometimes  it 
was  surmounted  by  only  one  or  two  of  the  usual 


zpz n 

— 1 t— 
rtrt 


Fig.  6. 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


9 


Egyptian  ventilators  ; but  generally  there  was  a small 
washhouse  on  the  roof,  and  a little  chamber  for  the  slaves 


or  guards  to  sleep  in. 
played  an  important 
part  in  the  domestic 
life  of  the  ancient 
Egyptians ; it  was 
there  that  the  women 
gossiped,  cooked,  and 
made  their  bread 
(fig.  7).  There,  also, 
the  whole  family  was 
wont  to  sleep  in  sum- 
mer, under  the  shelter 
of  mosquito  nets. 

The  mansions  of 


The  terrace  and  the  courtyard 


Fig 


7. — Box  representing  a house 
(British  Museum). 


the  rich  and  great  covered  a large  space  of  ground. 
They  most  frequently  stood  in  the  midst  of  a garden,  or 

of  an  enclosed  court 
planted  with  trees; 
and,  like  the  com- 
moner houses,  they 
turned  a blank 
front  to  the  street, 
consisting  of  bare 
walls  battlemented 
like  those  of  a 
fortress  (fig.  8).  Thus,  home-life  was  strictly  se- 
cluded, and  the  pleasure  of  seeing  was  sacrificed 
for  the  advantages  of  not  being  seen.  The  door  was 
approached  by  a flight  of  two  or  three  steps,  or  by 
a porch  supported  on  columns  (fig.  9)  and  adorned 


10 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


with  statues  (fig.  io),  which  gave  it  a monumental 
appearance,  and  indicated  the  social  importance  of  the 
family.  Sometimes  this  was  preceded  by  a pylon- 
gateway, such  as  usually  heralded  the  approach  to  a 
temple.  Inside  the  enclosure  it  was  like  a small 
town,  divided  into  quarters  by  irregular  walls.  The 
dwelling-house  stood  at  the  farther  end.;  the  granaries, 
stabling,  and  open  spaces  being  distributed  in  different 
parts  of  the  grounds  according  to  some  system  to  which 
we  as  yet  possess  no  clue.  These  arrangements,  how- 
ever, were  infinitely  varied.  If  I would  convey  some 


idea  of  the  residence  of  an  Egyptian  noble, — a resi- 
dence half  palace,  half  villa, — I cannot  do  better  than 
reproduce  two  out  of  the  many  pictorial  plans  which 
have  come  down  to  us  among  the  tomb-paintings  of 
the  Eighteenth  Dynasty.  The  first  (figs.  II,  12) 
represents  a Theban  house.  The  enclosure  is  square, 
and  surrounded  by  an  embattled  wall.  The  main  gate 
opens  upon  a road  bordered  with  trees,  which  runs 
beside  a canal,  or  perhaps  an  arm  of  the  Nile.  Low 
stone  walls  divide  the  garden  into  symmetrical  com- 
partments, like  those  which  are  seen  to  this  day  in  the 
great  gardens  of  Ekhmeem  or  Girgeh.  In  the  centre 


Fig.  9. 


Fig.  10. 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  I I 

is  a large  trellis  supported  on  four  rows  of  slender 
pillars.  Four  small  ponds,  two  to  the  right  and  two 
to  the  left,  are  stocked  with  ducks  and  geese.  Two 


Fig.  1 1. — Plan  of  a Theban  house  with  garden. 


nurseries,  two  summer-houses,  and  various  avenues 
of  sycamores,  date-palms,  and  Dom-palms  fill  up  the 
intermediate  space  ; while  at  the  end,  facing  the 
entrance,  stands  a small  two-storied  house  surmounted 
by  a painted  cornice. 


12 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


The  second  plan  is  copied  from  one  of  the  rock-cut 
tombs  of  Tell  el  Amarna  (figs.  13,  14).  Here  we  see 
a house  situate  at  the  end  of  the  gardens  of  the  great 
lord  A'i,  son-in-law  of  the  Pharaoh  Khou-en-Aten,  and 
himself  afterwards  king  of  Egypt.  An  oblong  stone 
tank  with  sloping  sides,  and  two  descending  flights 


Fig.  12. — Perspective  view  of  the  Theban  house. 


of  steps,  faces  the  entrance.  The  building  is 
rectangular,  the  width  being  somewhat  greater  than 
the  depth.  A large  doorway  opens  in  the  middle  of 
the  front,  and  gives  access  to  a court  planted  with 
trees  and  flanked  by  store-houses  fully  stocked  with 
provisions.  Two  small  courts,  placed  symmetrically 
in  the  two  farthest  corners,  contain  the  staircases  which 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


13 


lead  up  to  the  terrace.  This  first  building,  however,  is 
but  the  frame  which  surrounds  the  owner’s  dwelling. 
The  two  frontages  are  each  adorned  with  a pillared 
portico  and  a pylon.  Passing  the  outer  door,  one 
enters  a sort  of  long  central  passage,  divided  by  two 
walls  pierced  with  doorways,  so  as  to  form  three 
successive  courts, 
chambers ; the 
two  others  open 
to  right  and  left 
upon  two  smaller 
courts,  whence 
flights  of  steps 
lead  up  to  the 
terraced  roof. 

This  central 
building  is  called 
the  akhonuti,  or 
private  dwelling 
of  kings  or  nobles, 
to  which  only  the 
family  and  in- 
timate friends 
had  access.  The  number  of  storeys  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  facade  varied  according  to  the  taste  of 
the  owner.  The  frontage  was  generally  a straight 
wall.  Sometimes  it  was  divided  into  three  parts, 
with  the  middle  division  projecting,  in  which  case  the 
two  wings  were  ornamented  with  a colonnade  to  each 
story  (fig.  15),  or  surmounted  by  an  open  gallery 
(fig.  16).  The  central  pavilion  sometimes  presents 
the  appearance  of  a tower  which  dominates  the 


14 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


rest  of  the  building  (fig.  17).  The  facade  is  often 
decorated  with  slender  colonnettes  of  painted  wood, 
which  bear  no  weight,  and  merely  serve  to  lighten  the 
somewhat  severe  aspect  of  the  exterior.  Of  the  in- 
ternal arrangements,  we  know  but  little.  As  in  the 
middle-class  houses,  the  sleeping  rooms  were  probably 
small  and  dark  ; but,  on  the  other  hand,  the  reception 


Fig.  14. — Perspective  view  of  the  Palace  ot  Al. 

rooms  must  have  been  nearly  as  large  as  those  still  in 
use  in  the  Arab  houses  of  modern  Egypt.  The  decora- 
tion of  walls  and  ceilings  in  no  wise  resembled  such 
scenes  or  designs  as  we  find  in  the  tombs.  The  panels 
were  whitewashed  or  colourwashed,  and  bordered  with 
a polychrome  band.  The  ceilings  were  usually  left 
• white ; sometimes,  however,  they  were  decorated  with 
geometrical  patterns,  which  repeated  the  leading  motives 
employed  in  the  sepulchral  wall-paintings.  Thus  we 
find  examples  of  meanders  interspersed  with  rosettes 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


(fig.  1 8),  parti-coloured  squares  (fig.  19),  oxheads 
seen  frontwise,  scrolls,  and  flights  of  geese  (fig.  20). 


Fig.  15. 

I have  touched  only  upon  houses  of  the  second 


Fig.  16. 

Theban  period,  this  being  in  fact  the  time  of  which  we 
have  most  examples.  The  house-shaped  lamps  which 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


I 6 


are  found  in  such  large  numbers  in  the  Fayoom  date 
only  from  Roman  times ; but  the  Egyptians  of  that 
period  continued  to  build  ac- 
cording to  the  rules  which  were 
in  force  under  the  Pharaohs  of 
the  Eighteenth,  Nineteenth,  and 
Twentieth  Dynasties.  As  re- 
gards the  domestic  architecture 
of  the  ancient  kingdom,  the 
evidences  are  few  and  obscure. 
Nevertheless,  the  stelae,  tombs,  and  coffins  of  that 
period  often  furnish  designs 
which  show  us  the  style  of 
the  doorways  (fig.  21),  and 
one  Fourth  - Dynasty  sarco- 
phagus, that  of  Khufu-Poskhou, 
is  carved  in  the  likeness  of  a 
house  (fig.  22). 


Fig.  17. 


II. — Fortresses. 

Most  of  the  towns,  and  even  most  of  the  larger 
villages,  of  ancient  Egypt  were 
walled.  This  was  an  almost 
necessary  consequence  of  the 
geographical  characteristics  and 
the  political  constitution  of  the 
country.  The  mouths  of  the 
defiles  which  led  into  the  desert 
needed  to  be  closed  against 
the  Bedaween  ; while  the  great 
feudal  nobles  fortified  their  houses,  their  towns,  and 
the  villages  upon  their  domains  which  commanded 


ARCHITECTURE CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  I 7 


either  the  mountain  passes  or  the  narrow  parts  of  the 
river,  against  their  king  or  their  neighbours. 

The  oldest  fortresses  are  those  of  Abydos,  El  Kab, 
and  Semneh.  Abydos  contained  a sanctuary  dedi- 
cated to  Osiris,  and  was  situate  at  the  entrance  to 
one  of  the  roads  leading  to  the  Oasis.  As  the  renown 
of  the  temple  attracted  pilgrims,  so  the  position  of  the 
city  caused  it  to  be  frequented  by  merchants  ; hence 
the  prosperity  which 
it  derived  from  the 
influx  of  both 
classes  of  strangers 
exposed  the  city  to 
incursions  of  the 
Libyan  tribes.  At 
Abydos  there  yet 
remain  two  almost 
perfect  strongholds. 

The  older  forms,  as 
it  were,  the  core 
of  that  tumulus 
called  by  the  Arabs 
“ Kom-es-Sultan,”  or  “ the  Mound  of  the  King.”  The 
interior  of  this  building  has  been  excavated  to  a point 
some  ten  or  twelve  feet  above  the  ground  level,  but 
the  walls  outside  have  not  yet  been  cleared  from  the 
surrounding  sand  and  rubbish.  In  its  present  con- 
dition, it  forms  a parallelogram  of  crude  brickwork 
measuring  410  feet  from  north  to  south,  and  223 
feet  from  east  to  west.  The  main  axis  of  the 
structure  extends,  therefore,  from  north  to  south. 
The  principal  gateway  opens  in  the  western  wall, 


I 8 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


r ii  mini  ii  i 


not  far  from  the  north-west  corner;  but  there  would 
appear  to  have  been  two  smaller  gates,  one  in  the 

south  front,  and  one 
— a<eaE5  jn  ^ easti  The 
walls,  which  now 
stand  from  twenty- 
four  to  thirty-six 
feet  high,  have  lost 
somewhat  of  their 
original  height. 
They  are  about  six 
feet  thick  at  the 
top.  They  were  not 
built  all  together 
in  uniform  layers, 
but  in  huge  vertical 
panels,  easily  dis- 
tinguished by  the 
arrangement  of  the 
brickwork.  In  one 
division  the  bedding 
of  the  bricks  is 
strictly  horizontal  ; 
in  the  next  it  is 
slightly  concave, 
and  forms  a very 
flat  reversed  arch, 
of  which  the  ex- 
trados  rests  upon 
these  two  methods 
of  this  arrangement 
buildings  thus  con- 


Fig.  21.  Door  of  a house  of  the  Ancient 
Empire,  from  the  wall  of  a tomb  of  the 
Sixth  Dynasty. 

the  ground.  The  alternation  of 
is  regularly  repeated.  The  object 
is  obscure ; but  it  is  said  that 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  I 9 


structed  are  especially  fitted  to  resist  earthquake  shocks. 
However  this  may  be,  the  fortress  is  extremely  ancient, 
for  ever  since  the  Fifth  Dynasty,  the  nobles  of  Abydos 
took  possession  of  the  interior,  and  so  piled  it  up  with 
their  graves  as  to  deprive  it  of  all  strategic  value. 
A second  stronghold,  erected  a few  hundred  yards 
further  to  the  south-east,  replaced  that  of  Kom-es- 
Sultan  somewhere  about  the  time  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty,  and  narrowly  escaped  the  fate  of  the  first, 
under  the  rule  of  the  Ramessides.  Nothing,  in  fact,  but 


the  sudden  decline  of  the  city,  saved  it  from  being 
similarly  choked  and  buried. 

The  early  Egyptians  possessed  no  engines  calculated 
to  make  an  impression  on  very  massive  walls.  They 
knew  of  but  three  ways  of  forcing  a stronghold  ; namely, 
scaling  the  walls,  sapping  them,  or  bursting  open  the 
gates.  The  plan  adopted  by  their  engineers  in  building 
the  second  fort  is  admirably  well  calculated  to  resist  each 
of  these  modes  of  attack  (fig.  23).  The  outer  walls  are 
long  and  straight,  without  towers  or  projections  of  any 
kind  ; they  measure  430  feet  in  length  from  north  to 


20 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


south,  by  255  feet  in  width.  The  foundations  rest 
on  the  sand,  and  do  not  go  down  more  than  a foot. 
The  wall  (fig.  24)  is  of  crude  brick,  in  horizontal 
courses.  It  has  a slight  batter;  is  solid,  without  slits 
or  loopholes  ; and  is  decorated  outside  with  long  vertical 
grooves  or  panels,  like  those  depicted  on  the  stelae  of 
the  ancient  empire.  In  its  present  state,  it  rises  to  a 
height  of  some  thirty-six  feet  above  the  plain  ; when 


Fig.  23. 

perfect,  it  would  scarcely  have  exceeded  forty  feet,  which 
height  would  amply  suffice  to  protect  the  garrison  from 
all  danger  of  scaling  by  portable  ladders.  The  thick- 
ness of  the  wall  is  about  twenty  feet  at  the  base,  and 
sixteen  feet  above.  The  top  is  destroyed,  but  the  bas- 
reliefs  and  mural  paintings  (fig.  25)  show  that  it 
must  have  been  crowned  with  a continuous  cornice, 
boldly  projecting,  furnished  with  a slight  low  parapet, 
and  surmounted  by  battlements,  which  were  generally 
rounded,  but  sometimes,  though  rarely,  squared.  The 


ARCHITECTURE CIVIL  AND  MILITARY. 


2 I 


walk  round  the  top  of  the  ramparts,  though  diminished 
by  the  parapet,  was  still  twelve  or  fifteen  feet  wide.  It 
ran  uninterruptedly  along  the  four  sides,  and  was  reached 
by  narrow  staircases  formed  in  the  thickness  of  the 
walls,  but  now  destroyed. 


in  the  circuit.  It  was  upon  these  w^eak  points  that 
besiegers  and  besieged  alike  concentrated  their  efforts. 


the  place  in  the  covering  wall.  Behind  it  was  a small 
place  d'annes  (b),  cut  partly  in  the  thickness  of  the  wall, 
and  leading  to  a second  gate  (c)  as  narrow  as  the  first. 
When,  notwithstanding  the  showers  of  missiles  poured 
upon  them  from  the  top  of  the  walls,  not  only  in  front, 
but  also  from  both  sides,  the  attacking  party  had  suc- 


There  was  no  ditch,  but  in 
order  to  protect  the  base  of 
the  main  wall  from  sappers, 
they  erected,  about  ten  feet 
in  advance  of  it,  a battle- 
mented  covering  wall,  some 
sixteen  feet  in  height.  These 
precautions  sufficed  against 
sap  and  scaling;  but  the 
gates  remained  as  open  gaps 


Fig.  25. 


The  fortress  of 
Abydos  had  two 
gates,  the  main  one 
being  situate  at  the 
east  end  of  the 
north  front  (fig.  26). 
A narrow  cutting  (a), 
closed  by  a massive 
wooden  door,  marked 


22 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Fig.  26. 


ceedecl  in  carrying  this  second  door,  they  were  not  yet 
in  the  heart  of  the  place.  They  would  still  have  to 
traverse  an  oblong  court  (d),  closely  hemmed  in  between 

the  outer  walls  and  the  cross 
walls,  which  last  stood  at  right 
angles  to  the  first.  Finally, 
they  must  force  a last  postern 
(e),  which  was  purposely 
placed  in  the  most  awkward 
corner.  The  leading  principle 
in  the  construction  of  fortress- 
gates  was  always  the  same,  but  the  details  varied 
according  to  the  taste  of  the  engineer.  At  the  south- 
east gate  of  the  fort  of  Abydos 
(fig.  27)  the  place  d'annes  between 
the  two  walls  is  abolished,  and  the 
court  is  constructed  entirely  in  the 
thickness  of  the  main  wall ; while 
. at  Kom-el-Ahmar,  opposite  El  Kab 
(fig.  28),  the  block  of  brickwork  in 
the  midst  of  which  the  gate  is  cut  projects  boldly  in 
front.  The  posterns  opening  at  various  points  facili- 
tated the  movements  of  the  garrison, 
and  enabled  them  to  multiply  their 
sorties. 

The  same  system  of  fortification 
which  was  in  use  for  isolated  for- 
tresses was  also  employed  for  the  pro- 
tection of  towns.  At  Heliopolis,  at  San,  at  Sais,  at 
Thebes,  everywhere  in  short,  we  find  long  straight 
walls  forming  plain  squares  or  parallelograms,  without 
towers  or  bastions,  ditches  or  outworks.  The  thickness 


Fig.  28. 


ARCHITECTURE CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  23 


of  the  walls,  which  varied  from  thirty  to  eighty  feet,  made 
such  precautions  needless.  The  gates,  or  at  all  events 
the  principal  ones,  had  jambs  and  lintels  of  stone, 
decorated  with  scenes  and  inscriptions  ; as,  for  instance, 
that  of  Ombos,  which  Champollion  beheld  yet  in  situ, 
and  which  dated  from  the  reign  of  Thothmes  III.  The 
oldest  and  best  preserved  walled  city  in  Egypt,  namely, 
El  Kab,  belongs  probably  to  the  ancient  empire  (fig.  29). 
The  Nile  washed 
part  of  it  away 
some  years  ago ; 
but  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  present 
century  it  formed 
an  irregular  quad- 
rilateral enclosure, 
measuring  some 
2, 100  feet  in  length, 
by  about  a quarter 
less  in  breadth. 

The  south  front  is 
constructed  on  the 
same  principles  as  the  wall  at  Kom-es-Sultan,  the 
bricks  being  bedded  in  alternate  horizontal  and  concave 
sections.  Along  the  north  and  west  fronts  they  are 
laid  in  undulating  layers  from  end  to  end.  The  thick- 
ness is  thirty-eight  feet,  and  the  average  height  thirty 
feet ; and  spacious  ramps  lead  up  to  the  walk  upon 
the  walls.  The  gates  are  placed  irregularly,  one  in 
each  side  to  north,  east,  and  west,  but  none  in  the 
south  face ; they  are,  however,  in  too  ruinous  a state 
to  admit  of  any  plan  being  taken  of  them.  The 


24 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


enclosure  contained  a considerable  population,  whose 
dwellings  were  unequally  distributed,  the  greater  part 
being  concentrated  towards  the  north  and  wrest,  where 
excavations  have  disclosed  the  remains  of  a large 
number  of  houses.  The  temples  were  grouped  together 
in  a square  enclosure,  concentric  with  the  outer  wall ; 
and  this  second  enclosure  served  for  a keep,  where  the 
garrison  could  hold  out  long  after  the  rest  of  the  town 
had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 

The  rectangular  plan,  though  excellent  in  a plain,  was 

not  always  available 
in  a hilly  country. 
When  the  spot  to  be 
fortified  was  situate 
upon  a height,  the 
Egyptian  engineers 
knew  perfectly  well 
how  to  adapt  their 
lines  of  defence  to 
the  nature  of  the  site. 
At  Kom  Ombo  (fig.  30)  the  walls  exactly  followed  the 
outline  of  the  isolated  mound  on  which  the  town  was 
perched,  and  presented  towards  the  east  a front  bristling 
with  irregular  projections,  the  style  of  which  roughly 
resembles  our  modern  bastions.  At  Kummeh  and 
Semneh,  in  Nubia,  where  the  Nile  rushes  over  the 
rocks  of  the  second  cataract,  the  engineering  arrange- 
ments are  very  ingenious,  and  display  much  real  skill. 
Usertesen  III.  had  fixed  on  this  pass  as  the  frontier  of 
Egypt,  and  the  fortresses  which  he  there  constructed 
were  intended  to  bar  the  water-way  against  the  vessels 
of  the  neighbouring  negro  tribes.  At  Kummeh,  on  the 


N <—| s 


Fig:.  .10. 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  25 


right  bank,  the  position  was  naturally  strong  (fig.  31). 
Upon  a rocky  height  surrounded  by  precipices,  was 
planned  an  irregular 
square  measuring 
about  200  feet  each 
way.  Two  elongated 
bastions,  one  on  the 
north-east  and  the 
other  on  the  south- 
east, guarded  respec- 
tively the  path  leading 
to  the  gate,  and  the 
course  of  the  river. 

The  covering  wall  stood  thirteen  feet  high,  and  closely 
followed  the  line  of  the  main  wall,  except  at  the  north 

and  south  corners, 
where  it  formed  two 
bastion -like  projec- 
tions. At  Semneh, 
on  the  opposite  bank, 
the  site  was  less 
favourable.  The  east 
side  was  protected 
by  a belt  of  cliffs 
going  sheer  down  to 
the  water’s  edge  ; but 
the  three  other  sides 
were  well-nigh  open 
(fig.  32).  A straight 
wall,  about  fifty  feet  in  height,  was  carried  along  the 
cliffs  on  the  side  next  the  river ; but  the  walls  looking 
towards  the  plain  rose  to  eighty  feet,  and  bristled 


26 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


with  bastion-like  projections  jutting  out  for  a distance 
of  fifty  feet  from  the  curtain  wall,  measuring  thirty 
feet  thick  at  the  base  and  thirteen  feet  at  the  top,  and 
irregularly  spaced,  according  to  the  requirements  of 
the  defence.  These  spurs,  which  are  not  battlemented, 
served  in  place  of  towers.  They  added  to  the  strength 
of  the  walls,  protected  the  walk  round  the  top,  and 
enabled  the  besieged  to  direct  a flank  attack  against 
the  enemy  if  any  attempt  were  made  upon  the  wall  of 
circuit.  The  intervals  between  these  spurs  are  accu- 
rately calculated  as  to  distance,  in  order  that  the  archers 

should  be  able  to 
sweep  the  inter- 
vening ground  with 
their  arrows.  Cur- 
tains and  salients 
are  alike  built  of 

Fig.  33.— Section  of  the  platform  at  a b,  crude  brick,  with 
of  the  preceding  plan. 

beams  bedded  hori- 
zontally in  the  mass.  The  outer  face  is  in  two  parts, 
the  lower  division  being  nearly  vertical,  and  the  upper 
one  inclined  at  an  angle  of  about  seventy  degrees, 
which  made  scaling  very  difficult,  if  not  impossible. 
The  whole  of  the  ground  enclosed  by  the  wall  of  circuit 
was  filled  in  to  nearly  the  level  of  the  ramparts  (fig.  33). 
Externally,  the  covering  wall  of  stone  was  separated 
from  the  body  of  the  fortress  by  a dry  ditch,  some  IOO 
to  130  feet  in  width.  This  wall  closely  followed  the 
main  outline,  and  rose  to  a height  which  varied  accord- 
ing to  the  situation  from  six  to  ten  feet  above  the  level 
of  the  plain.  On  the  northward  side  it  was  cut  by  the 
winding  road,  which  led  down  into  the  plain.  These 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  27 


Fia 


34- 


arrangements,  skilful  as  they  were,  did  not  prevent  the 
fall  of  the  place.  A large  breach  in  the  southward 
face,  between  the  two  salients  nearest  to  the  river, 
marks  the  point  of  attack 
selected  by  the  enemy. 

New  methods  of  fortifi- 
cation were  revealed  to 
the  Egyptians  in  the 
course  of  the  great  Asiatic 
wars  undertaken  by  the 
Pharaohs  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty.  The  nomadic 
tribes  of  Syria  erected 
small  forts  in  which  they  took  refuge  when  threatened 
with  invasion  (fig.  34).  The  Canaanite  and  Hittite 

cities,  as  Ascalon, 
Dapour,  and  Merom, 
were  surrounded  by 
strong  walls,  gene- 
rally built  of  stone 
and  flanked  with 
towers  (fig.  35). 
Those  which  stood 
in  the  open  country, 
as  for  instance  Qod- 
shou  (Ivadesh),  were 
enclosed  by  a double 
moat  (fig.  36).  Having  proved  the  efficacy  of  these  new 
types  of  defensive  architecture  in  the  course  of  their 
campaigns,  the  Pharaohs  reproduced  them  in  the  valley 
of  the  Nile.  From  the  beginning  of  the  Nineteenth 
Dynasty,  the  eastern  frontier  of  the  Delta  (always  the 


28 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


weakest)  was  protected  by  a line  of  forts  constructed 
after  the  Canaanite  model.  The  Egyptians,  moreover, 
not  content  with  appropriating  the  thing,  appropriated 
also  the  name,  and  called  these  frontier  towers  by  the 

Semitic  name  of 
Magdilu,  or  Mig- 
dols.*  For  these 
purposes,  or  at  all 
events  for  cities 
which  were  exposed 
to  the  incursions 
of  the  Asiatic  tribes, 
brick  was  not  deem- 
ed to  be  sufficiently 
strong ; hence  the 
walls  of  Heliopolis,  and  even  those  of  Memphis,  were 
faced  with  stone.  Of  these  new  fortresses  no  ruins 
remain ; and  but  for  a royal 
caprice  which  happens  to  have 
left  us  a model  Migdol  in  that 
most  unlikely  place,  the  necro- 
polis of  Thebes,  we  should  now 
be  constrained  to  attempt  a 
restoration  of  their  probable  ap- 
pearance from  the  representations 
in  certain  mural  tableaux.  When, 
however,  Rameses  III.  erected  his 
memorial  temple  f (figs.  37  and  38),  he  desired,  in 
remembrance  of  his  Syrian  victories,  to  give  it  an 
outwardly  military  aspect.  Along  the  eastward  front 
of  the  enclosure  there  accordingly  runs  a battlemented 
* In  Egyptian,  “ Makatilu."  j-  At  Medinet  Haboot. 


Fig.  37. — Plan  of  the 
pavilion  of  Medinet 
Haboo. 


Fig.  36. 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  2g 


covering  wall  of  stone,  averaging  some  thirteen  feet  in 
height.  The  gate,  protected  by  a large  quadrangular 
bastion,  opened  in  the  middle  of  this  wall.  It  was 
three  feet  four  inches  in  width,  and  was  flanked  by 
two  small  oblong  guard-houses,  the  flat  roofs  of  which 
stood  about  three  feet  higher  than  the  ramparts.  Pass- 
ing this  gate,  one  stands  face  to  face  with  a real  Migdol. 
Two  blocks  of  building  enclose  a succession  of  court- 
yards, which  narrow  as  they  recede,  and  are  connected 


at  the  lower  end  by  a kind  of  gate-house,  consisting  of 
one  massive  gateway  surmounted  by  two  storeys  of 
chambers.  The  eastward  faces  of  the  towers  rise 
above  an  inclined  basement,  which  slopes  to  a height 
of  from  fifteen  to  sixteen  feet  from  the  ground.  This 
answered  two  purposes.  It  increased  the  strength  of 
the  wall  at  the  part  exposed  to  sappers;  it  also  caused 
the  rebound  of  projectiles  thrown  from  above,  and  so 
helped  to  keep  assailants  at  a distance.  The  whole 
height  is  about  seventy-two  feet,  and  the  frontwise 
width  of  each  tower  is  thirty-two  feet.  The  buildings 
situate  at  the  back,  to  right  and  left  of  the  gate,  were 
destroyed  in  ancient  times.  The  details  of  the  decora- 


30 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


tion  are  partly  religious,  partly  triumphal,  as  befits  the 
character  of  the  structure.  It  is  unlikely,  however,  that 
actual  fortresses  were  adorned  with  brackets  and  bas- 
relief  sculptures,  such  we  here  see  on  either  side  of  the 
fore-court.  Such  as  it  is,  the  so-called  “ pavilion  ” 
of  Medinet  Haboo  offers  an  unique  example  of  the  high 
degree  of  perfection  to  which  the  victorious  Pharaohs 
of  this  period  had  carried  their  military  architecture. 

Material  evidence  fails  us  almost  entirely,  after  the 
reign  of  Rameses  III.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
eleventh  century  b.c.,  the  high-priests  of  Amen  repaired 
the  walls  of  Thebes,  of  Gebelayn,  and  of  El  Hibeh 
opposite  Feshun.  The  territorial  subdivision  of  the 
country,  which  took  place  under  the  successors  of 
Sheshonk,  compelled  the  provincial  princes  to  multiply 
their  strongholds.  The  campaign  of  Piankhi  on  the 
banks  of  the  Nile  is  a series  of  successful  sieges. 
Nothing,  however,  leads  us  to  suppose  that  the  art  of 
fortification  had  at  that  time  made  any  distinct  progress; 
and  when  the  Greek  rulers  succeeded  the  native 
Pharaohs,  they  most  probably  found  it  in  much  the 
same  stage  that  it  was  left  by  the  engineers  of  the 
Nineteenth  and  Twentieth  Dynasties. 

III.— Public  Works. 

A permanent  network  of  roads  would  be  useless  in 
a country  like  Egypt.  The  Nile  here  is  the  natural 
highway  for  purposes  of  commerce,  and  the  pathways 
which  intersect  the  fields  suffice  for  foot-passengers, 
for  cattle,  and  for  the  transport  of  goods  from  village 
to  village.  Ferry-boats  for  crossing  the  river,  fords 
wherever  the  canals  were  shallow  enough,  and  em- 


ARCHITECTURE CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  3 I 


banked  dams  thrown  up  here  and  there  where  the 
water  was  too  deep  for  fordings,  completed  the  s)rstem 
of  internal  communication.  Bridges  were  rare.  Up 
to  the  present  time,  wTe  knowT  of  but  one  in  the  whole 
territory  of  ancient  Egypt ; and  whether  that  one  was 
long  or  short,  built  of  stone  or  of  wood,  supported  on 
arches  or  boldly  flung  across  the  stream  from  bank  to 
bank,  we  cannot  even  conjecture.  This  bridge,  close 
under  the  very  walls  of  Zaru,*  crossed  the  canal  which 


separated  the  eastern  frontier  of 

Egypt  from  the  desert  regions 

* 

of  Arabia  Petreea.  A fortified 

m> 

p 

enclosure  protected  this  canal  on  r 

J! 

the  Asiatic  side,  as  showm  in  ^ 

3J 

liL-fl- 

the  accompanying  illustration  1 

III 

1 (1 

(fig.  39).  The  maintenance  of  J 

l| 

Jf 

public  highways,  which  figures 

w u u 

as  so  costly  an  item  in  the  ex-  ■*— 

penses  of  modern  nations,  played, 

therefore,  but  a very  small  part 

in  the  annual  disbursements  of 

39- 

the  Pharaohs,  who  had  only  to  provide  for  the  due 
execution  of  three  great  branches  of  government  works, 
— namely  storage,  irrigation,  mining  and  quarrying. 

The  taxation  of  ancient  Egypt  was  levied  in  kind, 
and  government  servants  w’ere  paid  after  the  same 

* The  bas-relief  sculpture  from  which  the  above  illustration  is 
taken  (outer  wall  of  Hypostyle  Hall,  Karnak,  north  end)  represents 
Seti  I.  returning  in  triumph  from  one  of  his  Syrian  campaigns.  He 
is  met  at  Zaru  by  the  great  officers  of  his  court,  who  bring  bouquets 
of  lotus-blossoms  in  their  hands.  Pithom  and  other  frontier  forts 
are  depicted  in  this  tableau,  and  Pithom  is  apparently  not  very  far 
from  Zaru.  The  site  of  Zaru  has  not  yet  been  identified.  [Trans- 
lator’s note.] 


32 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


system.  To  workmen,  there  were  monthly  distribu- 
tions of  corn,  oil,  and  wine,  wherewith  to  support 
their  families  ; while  from  end  to  end  of  the  social  scale, 
each  functionary,  in  exchange  for  his  labour,  received 
cattle,  stuffs,  manufactured  goods,  and  certain  quantities 

of  copper  or  precious 
metals.  Thus  it  became 
necessary  that  the  trea- 
sury officials  should  have 
the  command  of  vast 
storehouses  for  the  safe 
keeping  of  the  various 
goods  collected  under  the 
head  of  taxation.  These  were  classified  and  stored  in 
separate  quarters,  each  storehouse  being  surrounded 
by  walls  and  guarded  by 
vigilant  keepers.  There 
was  enormous  stabling 
for  cattle ; there  were 
cellars  where  the  am- 
phorae were  piled  in  re- 
gular layers  (fig.  40),  or 

hung  in  rows  upon  the 
walls,  each  with  the  date 
written  on  the  side  of  the  jar  ; there  were  oven-shaped 
granaries  where  the  corn  was  poured  in  through  a trap 
at  the  top  (fig.  41),  and  taken  out  through  a trap  at 
the  bottom.  At  Thuku,  identified  with  Pithom  by 
M.  Naville,*  the  storechambers  (a)  are  rectangular  and 

* See  “ The  Store  City  of  Pithom  and  the  Route  of  the  Exodus, 
by  Ed.  Naville,  with  13  Plates  and  2 .Maps;  published  by  the 
Egypt  Exploration  Fund.  First  edition  1885,  second  edition  1885. 
Triibncr  & Co.,  London.  [Translator’s  note.] 


Fig.  41. 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  33 

of  different  dimensions  (fig.  42),  originally  divided  by 
floors,  and  having  no  communication  with  each  other. 
Here  the  corn  had  to  be  not  only  put  in  but  taken 
out  through  the  aperture  at  the  top.  At  the  Rames- 
seum,  Thebes,  thousands 
of  ostraka  and  jar-stoppers 
found  upon  the  spot  prove 
that  the  brick-built  remains 
at  the  back  of  the  temple 
were  the  cellars  of  the 
local  deity.  The  ruins 
consist  of  a series  of 
vaulted  chambers  origi- 
nally surmounted  by  a 
platform  or  terrace  (fig. 

43).  At  Philae,  Ombos, 

Daphnae,*  and  most  of  the  frontier  towns  of  the  Delta,, 
there  were  magazines  ot  this  description,  and  many 


Fig.  43- 

more  will  doubtless  be  discovered  when  made  the  object 
of  serious  exploration. 

* For  an  account  of  the  recent  explorations  at  Daphnae  (the 
“ Tahpanhes  ” of  the  Bible,  the  Tell  Defenneh  of  the  present  day) 
see  Mr.  Petrie’s  memoir,  entitled  “ Tcrnis,  Part  II.  ( including  Nebesheh, 
Gemayemi,  Defenneh,  etc.),"  shortly  to  be  published  by  the  Egypt 
Exploration  Fund.  [Translator’s  note.] 


3 


34 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


The  irrigation  system  of  Egypt  is  but  little  changed 
since  the  olden  time.  Some  new  canals  have  been  cut, 
and  yet  more  have  been  silted  up  through  the  negligence 
of  those  in  power  ; but  the  general  scheme,  and  the 
methods  employed,  continue  much  the  same,  and 
demand  but  little  engineering  skill.  Wherever  I have 
investigated  the  remains  of  ancient  canals,  I have 
been  unable  to  detect  any  traces  of  masonry  at  the 
weak  points,  or  at  the  mouths,  of  these  cuttings. 
They  are  mere  excavated  ditches,  from  twenty  to 
sixty  or  seventy  feet  in  width.  The  earth  flung  out 
during  the  work  was  thrown  to  right  and  left,  forming 
irregular  embankments  from  seven  to  fourteen  feet  in 
height.  The  course  of  the  ancient  canals  was  generally 
straight ; but  that  rule  was  not  strictly  observed,  and 
enormous  curves  were  often  described  in  order  to  avoid 
even  slight  irregularities  of  surface.  Dikes  thrown  up 
from  the  foot  of  the  cliffs  to  the  banks  of  the  Nile, 
divided  the  plain  at  intervals  into  a series  of  artificial 
basins  where  the  overflow  formed  back-waters  at  the 
time  of  inundation.  These  dikes  are  generally  earth- 
works, though  they  are  sometimes  constructed  of  baked 
brick,  as  in  the  province  of  Girgeh.  Very  rarely  are  they 
built  of  hewn  stone,  like  that  great  dike  of  Kosheish 
which  was  constructed  by  Mena  in  primaeval  times, 
in  order  to  divert  the  course  of  the  Nile  from  the  spot 
on  which  he  founded  Memphis.*  The  network  of 
canals  began  near  Silsilis  and  extended  to  the  sea- 
board, without  ever  losing  touch  of  the  river,  save  at 


* The  remains  of  this  gigantic  work  may  yet  be  seen  about  two 
hours’  distance  to  the  southward  of  Meydoom.  See  Herodotus, 
book  ii.,  chap.  99.  [Translator's  note.] 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  35 

one  spot  near  Beni-Souef,  where  it  throws  out  a branch 
in  the  direction  of  the  Fayoom.  Here,  through  a 
narrow  and  sinuous  gorge,  deepened  probably  by  the 
hand  of  man,  it  passes  the  rocky  barrier  which  divides 
that  low-lying  province  from  the  valley  of  the  Nile, 
and  thence  expands  into  a fanlike  ramification  of 
innumerable  channels.  Having  thus  irrigated  the 
district,  the  waters  flow  out  again  ; those  nearest  the 
Nile  returning  by  the  same  way  that  they  flowed  in, 
while  the  rest  form  a series  of  lakes,  the  largest  of 
which  is  known  as  the  Birket-el-Korn.  If  we  are  to 
believe  Herodotus,  the  work  was  not  so  simply  done. 
A king,  named  Mceris,  desired  to  create  a reservoir  in 
the  Fayoom  which  should  neutralise  the  evil  effects  of 
insufficient  or  superabundant  inundations.  This  re- 
servoir was  named,  after  him,  Lake  Moeris.  If  the 
supply  fell  below  the  average,  then  the  stored  waters 
were  let  loose,  and  Lower  Egypt  and  the  Western  Delta 
were  flooded  to  the  needful  height.  If  next  year  the 
inundation  came  down  in  too  great  force,  Lake  Moeris 
received  and  stored  the  surplus  till  such  time  as  the 
waters  began  to  subside.  Two  pyramids,  each  sur- 
mounted by  a sitting  colossus,  one  representing  the 
king  and  the  other  his  queen,  were  erected  in  the 
midst  of  the  lake.  Such  is  the  tale  told  by  Herodotus, 
and  it  is  a tale  which  has  considerably  embarrassed 
our  modern  engineers  and  topographers.  How,  in 
fact,  was  it  possible  to  find  in  the  Fayoom  a site  which 
could  have  contained  a basin  measuring  at  least  ninety 
miles  in  circumference  ? The  most  reasonable  theory 
is  that  of  Linant,  who  supposes  Lake  Moeris  to  have 
extended  over  the  whole  of  the  lowlying  land  which 


2,6  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

skirts  the  Libyan  cliffs  between  Illahoun  and  Medinet 
el-Fayoom  ; but  recent  explorations  have  proved  that  the 
dikes  by  which  this  pretended  reservoir  was  bounded  are 
modern  works,  erected  probably  within  the  last  two 
hundred  years.  I no  longer  believe  that  Lake  Mceris  ever 
existed.  If  Herodotus  did  actually  visit  the  Fayoom,  it 
was  probably  in  summer,  at  the  time  oi  the  high  Nile, 

when  the  whole  district 
presents  the  appearance  of 
an  inland  sea.  What  he 
took  for  the  shores  of  this 
lake  were  the  embankments 
which  divided  it  into  basins 
and  acted  as  highways 
between  the  various  towns. 
His  narrative,  repeated  by 
the  classic  authors,  has  been 
accepted  by  the  moderns ; 
and  Egypt,  neither  accept- 
ing nor  rejecting  it,  was 
gratified  long  after  date  with 
the  reputation  of  a gigantic 
work  which  would  in  truth 
have  been  the  glory  of  her  civil  engineers,  if  it  had 
ever  existed.*  The  only  works  of  the  kind  which 
they  did  undertake  were  much  less  pretentious.  These 
consist  of  stone-built  dams  erected  at  the  mouths  of 

* The  French  idiom  here  is  almost  untranslatable  ; I,  therefore, 
give  the  original  : — “ Son  recit,  repete  par  les  ecrivains  anciens,  a ete 
accepte  par  nos  contemporains,  et  l’Egypte,  qui  n’en  pouvait  mais,  a 
ete  gratifiee  apres  coup  d’une  oeuvre  gigantesque,  dont  l'execution 
aurait  ete  le  vrai  titre  de  gloire  des  ses  ingenieurs,  si  elle  avait  jamais 
existe.”  [Translator’s  note.] 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  37 


many  of  those  lateral  ravines,  or  wadys,  which  lead  down 
from  the  mountain  ranges  into  the  valley  of  the  Nile. 
One  of  the  most  important  among  them  was  pointed 
out,  in  1885,  by  Dr.  Schweinfurth,  at  a distance  of 
about  six  miles  and  a half  from  the  Baths  of  Helwan, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Wady  Gerraweh  (fig.  44).  It  answered 
two  purposes,  firstly,  as  a means  of  storing  the  water  of 
the  inundation  for  the  use  of  the  workmen  in  the  neigh- 
bouring quarries;  and,  secondly,  as  a barrier  to  break 
the  force  of  the  torrents  which  rush  down  from  the 
desert  after  the  heavy  rains  of  springtime  and  winter. 
The  ravine  measures  about  240  feet  in  width,  the 
sides  being  on  an  average  from  40  to  50  feet  in 
height.  The  dam,  which 
is  143  feet  in  thickness, 
consists  of  three  layers  of 
material ; at  the  bottom 
(a),  a bed  of  clay  and 
rubble  ; next,  a piled  mass  of  limestone  blocks ; lastly, 
a wall  of  cut  stone  built  in  retreating  stages,  like 
an  enormous  flight  of  steps.  Thirty-two  of  the 
original  thirty-five  stages  are  yet  in  situ,  and  about 
one-fourth  part  of  the  dam  remains  piled  up  against 
the  sides  of  the  ravine  to  right  and  left ; but  the 
middle  part  has  been  swept  away  by  the  force  of  the 
torrent  (fig.  45).  A similar  dyke  transformed  the  end 
of  Wady  Genneh  into  a little  lake  which  supplied  the 
Sinaitic  miners  with  water. 

Most  of  the  localities  from  which  the  Egyptians 
derived  their  metals  and  choicest  materials  in  hard 
stone,  were  difficult  of  access,  and  would  have  been 
useless  had  roads  not  been  made,  and  works  of  this 


Fig-  45- 


38 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


kind  carried  out,  so  to  make  life  somewhat  less  in- 
supportable when  there. 

In  order  to  reach  the  diorite  and  grey  granite  quar- 
ries of  the  Hammamat  Valley,  the  Pharaohs  caused 
a series  of  rock-cut  cisterns  to  be  constructed  along 
the  line  of  route.  Some  few  insignificant  springs, 
skilfully  conducted  into  these  reservoirs,  made  it 
possible  to  plant  workmen’s  villages  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  quarries,  and  also  near  the  emerald 
mines  on  the  borders  of  the  Red  Sea.  Hundreds  of 
hired  labourers,  slaves,  and  condemned  criminals  here 
led  a wretched  existence  under  the  rule  of  some  eight 
or  ten  overseers,  and  the  brutal  surveillance  of  a 
company  of  Libyan  or  negro  mercenary  troops.  The 
least  political  disturbance  in  Egypt,  an  unsuccessful 
campaign,  or  any  untoward  incident  of  a troubled 
reign,  sufficed  to  break  up  the  precarious  stability  of 
these  remote  establishments.  The  Bedaween  at  once 
attacked  the  colony;  the  workmen  deserted;  the  guards, 
weary  of  exile,  hastened  back  to  the  valley  of  the  Nile, 
and  all  was  at  a standstill. 

The  choicest  materials,  as  diorite,  basalt,  black  granite, 
porphyry,  and  red  and  yellow  breccia,  which  are  only 
found  in  the  desert,  were  rarely  used  for  architectural 
purposes.  In  order  to  procure  them,  it  was  neces- 
sary to  organise  regular  expeditions  of  soldiers  and 
workmen  ; therefore  they  were  reserved  for  sarco- 
phagi and  important  works  of  art.  Those  quarries 
which  supplied  building  materials  for  temples  and 
funereal  monuments,  such  as  limestone,  sandstone, 
alabaster,  and  red  granite,  were  all  found  in  the  Nile 
valley,  and  were,  therefore,  easy  of  access.  When  the 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  39 


vein  which  it  was  intended  to  work  traversed  the  lower 
strata  of  the  rock,  the  miners  excavated  chambers  and 
passages,  which  were  often  prolonged  to  a considerable 
distance.  Square  pillars,  left  standing  at  intervals, 
supported  the  superincumbent  mass,  while  tablets 
sculptured  in  the  most  conspicuous  places  commemorated 
the  kings  and  engineers  who  began  or  continued  the 
work.  Several  exhausted  or  abandoned  quarries  have 
been  transformed  into  votive  chapels;  as,  for  instance, 
the  Speos  Artemidos,  which  was  consecrated  by 
Thothmes  III.  and  Seti  I.  to  the  local  goddess  Pakht.* 
The  most  important  limestone  quarries  are  at  Toorah 
and  Massarah,  nearly  opposite  Memphis.  This  stone 
lends  itself  admirably  to  the  most  delicate  touches  of  the 
chisel,  hardens  when  exposed  to  the  air,  and  acquires 
a creamy  tone  most  restful  to  the  e}Te.  Hence  it  was 
much  in  request  by  architects  and  sculptors.  The  most 
extensive  sandstone  formations  are  at  Silsilis  (fig.  46). 
Here  the  cliffs  were  quarried  from  above,  and  under 
the  open  sky.  Clean  cut  and  absolutely  vertical,  the}r 
rise  to  a height  of  from  forty  to  fifty  feet,  sometimes 
presenting  a smooth  surface  from  top  to  bottom,  and 
sometimes  cut  in  stages  accessible  by  means  of  steps 
scarcely  large  enough  for  one  man  at  a time.  The 
walls  of  these  cuttings  are  covered  with  parallel  striae, 
sometimes  horizontal,  sometimes  slanting  to  the  left, 
and  sometimes  to  the  right,  so  forming  lines  of  serried 
chevrons  framed,  as  it  were,  between  grooves  an  inch, 

* M.  Golenischeff,  in  an  important  article  contributed  to  the 
Reciteil  des  Travaux,  vol.  iii.,  has  shown  that  this  Speos  was  in  all 
probability  consecrated  by  Queen  Hatshepsu,  whose  cartouches  were 
afterwards  erased  by  Thothmes  III.  in  favour  of  his  own.  [Transla- 
tor's note.] 


40 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


detaching  the  blocks. 


building. 


, 


mB 

I'lllllM 


or  an  inch  and  a half,  in  width,  by  nine  or 
length.  These  are  the  scars  left  upon  the 
the  tools  of  the  ancient 
workmen,  and  they  show 
the  method  employed  in 
The 

size  was  outlined  in  red 
ink,  and  this  outline  some- 
times indicated  the  form 
which  the  stone  was  to 
take  in  the  projected 
The  members 
of  the  French  Commis- 
sion, when  they  visited  the 


ten  feet  in 
surface  by 


Fig.  46. 


quarries  of  Gebel  Aboofaydah,  copied  the  diagrams  and 
squared  designs  of  several  capitals,  one  being  of  the 
lotus  pattern,  and  others  prepared  for  the  Hathor- 


ARCHITECTURE — CIVIL  AND  MILITARY.  4 I 


headed  pattern  (fig.  47).  The  outline  made,  the  vertical 
faces  of  the  block  were  divided  by  means  of  a long 
iron  chisel,  which  was  driven  in  perpendicularly  or 
obliquely  by  heavy  blows  of  the  mallet.  In  order  to 
detach  the  horizontal  faces,  they  made  use  of  wooden 
or  iron  wedges,  inserted  the  way  of  the  natural  strata 
of  the  stone.  Very  frequently  the  stone  was  roughly 


Fig-  47- 


blocked  out  before  being  actually  extracted  from  the 
bed.  Thus  at  Syene  (Assouan)  we  see  a couchant 
obelisk  of  granite,  the  under  side  of  which  is  one  with 
the  rock  itself ; and  at  Tehneh  there  are  drums  of 
columns  but  half  disengaged.  The  transport  of 
quarried  stone  was  effected  in  various  ways.  At  Syene, 
at  Silsilis,  at  Gebel  Sheykh  Hereedeh,  and  at  Gebel 
Aboofaydah,  the  quarries  are  literally  washed  by  the 


42 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


waters  of  the  Nile,  so  that  the  stone  was  loweerd  at 
once  into  the  barges.  At  Kasr-es-Syed,*  at  Toorah, 
and  other  localities  situate  at  some  distance  from  the 
river,  canals  dug  expressly  for  the  purpose  conveyed 


the  transport  boats  to  the  foot  of  the  cliffs.  When 
water  transit  was  out  of  the  question,  the  stone  was 
placed  on  sledges  drawn  by  oxen  (fig.  48),  or  dragged 
to  its  destination  by  gangs  of  labourers,  and  by  the 
help  of  rollers. 

* Chenoboscion. 

t Rude  bas-relief  sculpture  in  the  quarries  of  Toorah. 


CHAPTER  II. 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 

In  the  civil  and  military  architecture  of  ancient  Egypt, 
brick  played  the  principal  part ; but  in  the  religious 
architecture  of  the  nation  it  occupied  a very  secondary 
position.  The  Pharaohs  were  ambitious  of  building 
eternal  dwellings  for  their  deities,  and  stone  was  the 
only  material  which  seemed  sufficiently  durable  to  with- 
stand the  ravages  of  time  and  man. 

I. MATERIALS  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  CONSTRUCTION. 

It  is  an  error  to  suppose  that  the  Egyptians  em- 
ployed only  large  blocks  for  building  purposes.  The  size 
of  their  materials  varied  very  considerably  according  to 
the  uses  for  which  they  were  destined.  Architraves, 
drums  of  columns,  lintel-stones,  and  door-jambs  were 
sometimes  of  great  size.  The  longest  architraves  known 
— those,  namely,  which  bridge  the  central  nave  of  the 
hypostyle  hall  of  Karnak — have  a mean  length  of  30 
feet.  They  each  contain  40  cubic  yards,  and  weigh 
about  65  tons.  Ordinarily,  however,  the  blocks  are  not 
much  larger  than  those  now  used  in  Europe.  They 
measure,  that  is  to  say,  about  2\  to  4 feet  in  height, 
from  3 to  8 feet  in  length,  and  from  2 to  6 feet  in 
thickness. 

Some  temples  are  built  of  only  one  kind  of  stone  ; 


44 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


but  more  frequently  materials  of  different  kinds  are 
put  together  in  unequal  proportions.  Thus  the  main 
part  of  the  temples  of  Abydos  consists  of  very  fine 
limestone ; but  in  the  temple  of  Seti  I.,  the  columns, 
architraves,  jambs,  and  lintels, — all  parts,  in  short,  where 
it  might  be  feared  that  the  limestone  would  not  offer 
sufficient  resistance, — the  architect  has  had  recourse  to 
sandstone  ; while  in  that  of  Rameses  II.,  sandstone, 
granite,  and  alabaster  were  used.  At  Karnak,  Luxor, 
Tanis,  and  Memphis,  similar  combinations  may  be  seen. 
At  the  Ramesseum,  and  in  some  of  the  Nubian  temples, 
the  columns  stand  on  massive  supports  of  crude  brick. 
The  stones  were  dressed  more  or  less  carefully,  accord- 
ing to  the  positions  they  were  to  occupy.  When  the 
walls  were  of  medium  thickness,  as  in  most  partition 
walls,  they  are  well  wrought  on  all  sides.  When  the 
wall  was  thick,  the  core  blocks  were  roughed  out  as 
nearly  cubic  as  might  be,  and  piled  together  without 
much  care,  the  hollows  being  filled  up  with  smaller 
flakes,  pebbles,  or  mortar.  Casing  stones  were  care- 
fully wrought  on  the  faces,  and  the  joints  dressed  for 
two-thirds  or  three-quarters  of  the  length,  the  rest 
being  merely  picked  with  a point  (Note  6).  The  largest 
blocks  were  reserved  for  the  lower  parts  of  the  build- 
ing ; and  this  precaution  was  the  more  necessary 
because  the  architects  of  Pharaonic  times  sank  the 
foundations  of  their  temples  no  deeper  than  those  of 
their  houses.  At  Karnak,  they  are  not  carried  lower 
than  from  7 to  10  feet  ; at  Luxor,  on  the  side  anciently 
washed  by  the  river,  three  courses  of  masonry,  each 
measuring  about  2\  feet  in  depth,  form  a great  platform 
on  which  the  walls  rest ; while  at  the  Ramesseum,  the 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


45 


brickwork  bed  on  which  the  colonnade  stands  does  not 
seem  to  be  more  than  io  feet  deep.  These  are  but 
slight  depths  for  the  foundations  of  such  great  build- 
ings, but  the  experience  of  ages  proves  that  they  are 
sufficient.  The  hard  and  compact  humus  of  which  the 
soil  of  the  Nile  valley  is  composed,  contracts  every 
year  after  the  subsidence  of  the  inundation,  and  thus 
becomes  almost  incompressible.  As  the  building  pro- 
gressed, the  weight  of  the  superincumbent  masonry 
gradually  became  greater,  till  the  maximum  of  pressure 
was  attained,  and  a solid  basis  secured.  Wherever  I 
have  bared  the  foundations  of  the  walls,  I can  testify 
that  they  have  not  shifted. 

The  system  of  construction  in  force  among  the  ancient 
Egyptians  resembles  in  many  respects  that  of  the 
Greeks.  The  stones  are  often  placed  together  with  dry 
joints,  and  without  the  employment  of  any  binding 
contrivance,  the  masons  relying  on  the  mere  weight 
of  the  materials  to  keep  them  in  place.  Sometimes 
they  are  held  together  by  metal  cramps,  or  some- 
times— as  in  the  temple  of  Seti  I.,  at  Abydos — by 
dovetails  of  sycamore  wood  bearing  the  cartouche  of  the 
founder.  Most  commonly,  they  are  united  by  a mortar- 
joint,  more  or  less  thick.  All  the  mortars  of  which  I 
have  collected  samples  are  thus  far  of  three  kinds  : the 
first  is  white,  and  easily  reduced  to  an  impalpable 
powder,  being  of  lime  only ; the  others  are  grey,  and 
rough  to  the  touch,  being  mixtures  of  lime  and  sand  ; 
while  some  are  of  a reddish  colour,  owing  to  the  pounded 
brick  powder  with  which  they  are  mixed.  A judicious 
use  of  these  various  methods  enabled  the  Egyptians  to 
rival  the  Greeks  in  their  treatment  of  regular  courses, 


46 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


equal  blocks,  and  upright  joints  in  alternate  bond.  If 
they  did  not  always  work  equally  well,  their  short- 
comings must  be  charged  upon  the  imperfect  mechanical 
means  at  their  disposal.  The  enclosure  walls,  partitions, 
and  secondary  fagades  were  upright  ; and  they  raised 
the  materials  by  means  of  a rude  kind  of  crane  planted 
on  the  top.  The  pylon  walls  and  the  principal  fagades 
(and  sometimes  even  the  secondary  fagades)  were  sloped 
at  an  angle  which  varied  according  to  the  taste  of  the 
architect.  In  order  to  build  these,  they  formed  inclined 
planes,  the  slopes  of  which  were  lengthened  as  the 
structure  rose  in  height.  These  two  methods  were 
equally  perilous  ; for,  however  carefully  the  blocks 
might  be  protected  while  being 
raised,  they  were  constantly  in 
danger  of  losing  their  edges  or 
corners,  or  of  being  fractured 
before  they  reached  the  top  (Note 
7).  Thus  it  was  almost  always 
necessary  to  re-work  them ; and 
the  object  being  to  sacrifice  as  little  as  possible  of 
the  stone,  the  workmen  often  left  them  of  most  abnormal 
shapes  (fig.  49).  They  would  level  off  one  of  the  side 
faces,  and  then  the  joint,  instead  of  being  vertical, 
leaned  askew.  If  the  block  had  neither  height  nor 
length  to  spare,  they  made  up  the  loss  by  means  of  a 
supplementary  slip.  Sometimes  even  they  left  a pro- 
jection which  fitted  into  a corresponding  hollow  in 
the  next  upper  or  lower  course.  Being  first  of  all  ex- 
pedients designed  to  remedy  accidents,  these  methods 
degenerated  into  habitually  careless  ways  of  working. 
The  masons  who  had  inadvertently  hoisted  too  large  a 


1 — ] 

1 

T 

f_J  \ , 1 ' 

1 io  . 

Fig.  49. 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


47 


block,  no  longer  troubled  themselves  to  lower  it  back 
again,  but  worked  it  into  the  building  in  one  or  other  of 
the  ways  before  mentioned.  The  architect  neglected  to 
duly  supervise  the  dressing  and  placing  of  the  blocks. 
He  allowed  the  courses  to  vary,  and  the  vertical  joints, 
two  or  three  deep,  to  come  one  over  the  other.  The 
rough  work  done,  the  masons  dressed  down  the  stone, 
reworked  the  joints,  and  overlaid  the  whole  with  a coat 
of  cement  or  stucco,  coloured  to  match  the  material, 
which  concealed  the  faults  of  the  real  work.  The 
walls  scarcely  ever  end  with  a sharp  edge.  Bordered 
with  a torus,  around  which  a sculptured  riband  is 
entwined,  they  are  crowned  by 
a curved  cornice  surmounted  by 
a flat  band  (fig.  50)  ; or,  as  at 
Semneh,  by  a square  cornice ; 
or,  as  at  Medinet  Haboo,  by  a 
line  of  battlements.  Thus  framed 
in,  the  walls  looked  like  enormous 
panels,  each  panel  complete  in 
itself,  without  projections  and  almost  without  openings. 
Windows,  always  rare  in  Egyptian  architecture,  are 
mere  ventilators  when  introduced  into  the  walls  of 
temples,  being  intended  to  light  the  staircases,  as  in 
the  second  pylon  of  Horemheb  at  Karnak ; or  else 
to  support  decorative  woodwork  on  festival  days.  The 
gateways  project  but  slightly  from  the  body  of  the 
buildings  (fig.  51),  except  where  the  lintel  is  over- 
shadowed by  a projecting  cornice.  Real  windows  occur 
only  in  the  pavilion  of  Medinet  Haboo  ; but  that  build- 
ing was  constructed  on  the  model  of  a fortress,  and 
must  rank  as  an  exception  among  religious  monuments. 


48 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


The  ground-level  of  the  courts  and  halls  was  flagged 
with  rectangular  paving  stones,  well  enough  fitted, 

except  in  the  interco- 
lumniations,  where  the 
architects,  hopeless  of 
harmonising  the  lines 
of  the  pavement  with 
the  curved  bases  of  the 
columns,  have  filled  in 
the  space  with  small 
pieces,  set  without  order 
or  method  (fig.  52). 
Contrary  to  their  prac- 
tice when  house  build- 
ing, they  have  scarcely 
ever  employed  the  vault 
or  arch  in  temple  archi- 
tecture. We  nowhere 
meet  with  it,  except  at  Dayr-el-Baharee,  and  in  the 
seven  parallel  sanctuaries  of 
Abydos.  Even  in  these 
instances,  the  arch  is  pro- 
duced by  corbelling  ; that  is 
to  say,  the  curve  is  formed 
by  three  or  four  super- 
imposed horizontal  courses 

of  stone,  chiselled  out  to  FlS-  52-  Pavement  ot  the 
’ portico  of  Osiris  in  the 

the  form  required  (fig.  53)-  temple  of  Seti  I.  at  Abydos. 

The  ordinary  roofing  consists 

of  flat  paving  slabs.  When  the  space  between  the  walls 
was  not  too  wide,  these  slabs  bridged  it  over  at  a 
single  stretch  ; otherwise  the  roof  had  to  be  supported 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


49 


at  intervals,  and  the  wider  the  space  the  more  these 
supports  needed  to  be  multiplied.  The  supports  were 
connected  by  immense  stone  architraves,  on  which  the 
roofing  slabs  rested. 

The  supports  are  of  two  types, — the  pillar  and  the 
column.  Some  are  cut  from  a single  block.  Thus, 
the  monolithic  pillars  of  the  temple  of  the  sphinx 
(Note  8),  the  oldest  hitherto  found,  measure  16  feet  in 
height  by  4^  feet  in  width.  Monolithic  columns  of  red 
granite  are  also  found  among  the  ruins  of  Alexandria, 
Bubastis,  and  Mem- 
phis, which  date  from 
the  reigns  of  Hor-em- 
heb  and  Rameses  II., 
and  measure  some  20 
to  26  feet  in  height. 

But  these  are  excep- 
tional. Columns  and 
pillars  are  commonly 
builtin  courses,  which  Fig.  53. 

are  often  unequal  and 

irregular,  like  those  of  the  walls  which  surround  them. 
The  great  columns  of  Luxor  are  not  even  solid,  two- 
thirds  of  the  diameter  being  filled  up  with  yellow  cement, 
which  has  lost  its  strength,  and  crumbles  between  the 
fingers.  The  capital  of  the  column  of  Taharka  at  Karnak 
contains  three  courses,  each  about  4'8  inches  high.  The 
last  and  most  projecting  course  is  made  up  of  twenty- 
six  convergent  stones,  which  are  held  in  place  by  merely 
the  weight  of  the  abacus.  The,  same  carelessness  which 
we  have  already  noted  in  the  workmanship  of  the  walls 
is  found  in  the  workmanship  of  the  columns. 


4 


5° 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


The  quadrangular  pillar,  with  parallel  or  slightly  in- 
clined sides,  and  generally  without  either  base  or  capital, 
frequently  occurs  in  tombs  of  the  ancient  empire.  It 
reappears  later  at  Medinet  Haboo,  in  the  temple  of 
Thothmes  III.,  and  again  at  Karnak,  in  what  is  known 
as  the  processional  hall.  The  sides  of  these  square 
pillars  are  often  covered  with  painted  scenes,  while 
the  front  faces  were  more  decoratively  treated,  being 
sculptured  with  lotus  or  papyrus  stems  in  high  relief, 
as  on  the  pillar-stelae  of  Karnak,  or 
adorned  with  a head  of  Hathor  crowned 
with  the  sistrum,  as  in  the  small  speos 
of  Aboosimbel  (fig.  54),  or  sculptured 
with  a full-length  standing  figure  of 
Osiris,  as  in  the  second  court  of  Medinet 
Haboo;  or,  as  at  Denderah  and  Gebel 
Barkal,  with  the  figure  of  the  god  Bes. 
At  Karnak,  in  an  edifice  which  was  pro- 
bably erected  by  Hor-em-heb  with  build- 
ing material  taken  from  the  ruins  of  a 
sanctuary  of  Amenhotep  II.,  the  pillar  is 
capped  by  a cornice,  separated  from  the  architrave  by  a 
thin  abacus  (fig.  55).  By  cutting  away  its  four  edges,  the 
square  pillar  becomes  an  octagonal  prism,  and  further, 
by  cutting  off  the  eight  new  edges,  it  becomes  a sixteen- 
sided prism.  Some  pillars  in  the  tombs  of  Assouan 
and  Beni  Hassan,  and  in  the  processional  hall  at  Karnak 
(fig.  56),  as  well  as  in  the  chapels  of  Dayr-el-Baharee, 
are  of  this  type.  Besides  the  forms  thus  regularly 
evolved,  there  are  others  of  irregular  derivation, 
with  six,  twelve,  fifteen,  or  twenty  sides,  or  verging 
almost  upon  a perfect  circle.  The  portico  pillars  of  the 


Fig.  54- 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


51 


fAsmiigj 
yl'Lm 


temple  of  Osiris  at  Abydos  come  last  in  the  series  ; the 
drum  is  curved,  but  not 
round,  the  curve  being 
interrupted  at  both  ex- 
tremities of  the  same 
diameter  by  a flat  stripe. 

More  frequently  the 
sides  are  slightly  chan- 
nelled ; and  sometimes, 
as  at  Kalabsheh,  the 
flutings  are  divided  into 
four  groups  of  five  each 
by  five  vertical  flat 
stripes  (fig.  57).  The 
polygonal  pillar  is  always 
surmounted  by  a wide, 
flat,  disc-shaped  cap 
stone.  At  El  Kab  it 
bears  a head  of  Hathor, 
sculptured  in  relief  upon 
the  front  (fig.  58);  but 
almost  everywhere  else 
it  is  crowned  with  a 
simple  square  abacus, 
which  joins  it  to  the  ar- 
chitrave. Thus  treated, 
it  bears  a certain  family 
likeness  to  the  Doric 
column  ; and  one  under- 
stands how  Jomard  and 
Champollion,in  the  first  ardour  of  discovery,  were  tempted 
to  give  it  the  scarcely  justifiable  name  of  “ proto-Doric.” 


52 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


The  column  does  not  rest  immediately  upon  the  soil. 
It  is  always  furnished  with  a base  like  that  of  the 
polygonal  pillar,  sometimes  square  with  the  ground, 
and  sometimes  slightly  rounded.  This  base  is  either 
plain,  or  ornamented  only  with  a line  of  hieroglyphs. 
The  principal  forms  fall  into  three  types  : (i)  the 


F>g-  56- 

column  with  lotus  flower  capital ; * (2)  the  column 
with  lotus  bud  capital ; (3)  the  Hathor-headed  capital. 

I.  Columns  with  Lotus  Flower  Capitals. — The  shaft  is 
generally  plain,  or  merely  engraved  with  inscriptions 
or  bas-reliefs.  Sometimes,  however,  as  at  Medamot, 

* To  this  capital  Professor  Maspero  gives  the  name  of 
“ Cainpaniform  ” ; but  to  English  readers  the  term  "lotus-flower" 
will  be  more  familiar.  [Translator's  note.] 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


53 


it  is  formed  of  six  large  and  six  small  colonnettes  in 
alternation.  In  Pharaonic  times,  it  is  bulbous,  being 
curved  inward  at  the  base,  and 
ornamented  with  triangles  one 
within  another,  imitating  the 
large  leaves  which  sheathe  the 
sprouting  plant.  The  curve  is 
so  regulated  that  the  diameter 
at  the  base  and  the  top  shall 
be  about  equal.  In  the  Ptole- 
maic period,  the  bulb  often  dis- 
appears, owing  probably  to 
Greek  influences.  The  columns 
which  surround  the  first  court 
at  Edfoo  rise  straight  from 
their  bases.  The  shaft  always 
tapers  towards  the  top.  It  is 
finished  by  three  or  five  flat  bands,  one  above  the  other. 

At  Medamot,  where  the  shaft 
is  clustered,  the  architect  has 
doubtless  thought  that  one  tie 
at  the  top  appeared  insufficient 
to  hold  in  a dozen  colonnettes ; 
he  has  therefore  marked  two 
other  rings  of  bands  at  regular 
intervals.  The  Lotus  Flower 
capital  is  decorated  from  the 
spring  of  the  curve  with  a 
row  of  leaves,  like  those  which  sheathe  the  base. 
Between  these  are  figured  shoots  of  lotus  and  papyrus 
in  flower  and  bud.  The  height  of  the  capital,  and  the 
extent  of  its  projection  beyond  the  line  of  the  shaft, 


Fig.  58. 


54 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


varied  with  the  taste  of  the  architect.  At  Luxor,  the 
Lotus  Capitals  are  eleven  and  a 
half  feet  in  diameter  below  the 
re-curved  lip,  eighteen  feet  in 
diameter  at  the  top,  and  eleven 
and  a half  feet  in  height.  At 
Karnak,  in  the  hypostyle  hall, 
the  height  of  the  capital  is  twelve 
and  a quarter  feet,  and  the  great- 
est diameter  twenty-one  feet.  A 
square  die  surmounts  the  whole. 
This  die  is  almost  hidden  by  the 
curve  of  the  capital,  though  oc- 
casionally, as  at  Denderah,  it 
is  higher,  and  bears  on  each 
face  a figure  of  the  god  Bes 

(fig-  59)- 

The  Lotus  Flower  capital  is 
mostly  employed  in  the  middle 
avenue  of  hypostyle  halls,  as  at 
Karnak,  the  Ramesseum,  and 
Luxor  (fig.  60)  ; but  it  was  not 
restricted  to  this  position,  for 
we  also  find  it  in  porticoes,  as 
at  Medinet  Haboo,  Edfoo,  and 
Philae.  The  processional  hall* 
of  Thothmes  III.,  at  Karnak, 
contains  one  most  curious  variety 


* French  “Promenoir”;  this  is  per- 
haps best  expressed  by  “ Processional 
Hall,”  in  accordance  with  the  descrip- 
tion of  its  purpose  in  a subsequent  p; 


Fig.  60. 

[Translator’s  note.] 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


55 


r 


Fig.  6j. 


(fig.  61);  the  flower  is  inverted  like  a bell,  and  the 
shaft  is  turned  upside  down,  the  smaller 
end  being  sunk  in  the  plinth,  while  the 
larger  is  fitted  to  the  wide  part  of  the  iC 
overturned  bell.  This  ungraceful  inno-  ic:  ! :.*;! 
vation  achieved  no  success,  and  is  found 
nowhere  else.  Other  novelties  w?ere 
happier,  especially  those  which  enabled 
the  artist  to  introduce  decorative  ele- 
ments taken  from  the  flora  of  the 
country.  In  the  earlier  examples  at 
Soleb,  Sesebeh,  Bubastis,  and  Memphis, 
we  find  a crown  of  palm  branches 
springing  from  the  band,  their  heads 
being  curved  beneath  the  weight  of 
the  abacus  (fig.  62).  Later  on,  as  we 
approach  the  Ptolemaic  period,  the  date  and  the  half- 
unfolded  lotus  were  added  to  the 
palm-branches  (fig.  63).  Under 
the  Ptolemies  and  the  Caesars  the 
capita]  became  a complete  basket 
of  flowers  and  leaves, 
ranged  row  above  row, 
and  painted  in  the 
brightest  colours 
(fig.  64).  At  Edfoo, 

Ombos,  and  Philae 
one  w7ould  fancy  that  the  designer 
had  vowed  never  to  repeat  the 
same  pattern  in  the  same  portico. 
II.  Columns  with  Lotus  Bud 
Capitals. — Originally  these  may  perhaps  have  repre- 


Fig.  62. 


56  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Fig.  64. 


sented  a bunch  of  lotus  plants,  the  buds  being  bound 

together  at  the  neck 
to  form  the  capital. 
The  columns  of  Beni 
Hassan  consist  of 
four  rounded  stems 
(fig.  65).  Those  of 
the  Labyrinth,  of  the 
processional  hall  of  Thothmes  III.,  and  of  Medamot, 
consist  of  eight 
stems,  each  pre- 
senting a sharp 
edge  on  the 
outer  side  (fig. 

66).  The  bottom 
of  the  column  is 
bulbous,  and  set 
round  with  tri- 
angular leaves. 

The  top  is  sur- 
rounded by  three 
or  five  bands. 

A moulding  com- 
posed of  groups  of  three 
vertical  stripes  hangs  like 
a fringe  from  the  lowest 
band  in  the  space  between 
every  two  stems.  So  varied 
a surface  does  not  admit 
of  hieroglyphic  decoration ; 
therefore  the  projections  were  by  degrees  suppressed, 
and  the  whole  shaft  was  made  smooth.  In  the 


Fig.  65. 


Fig.  66. 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


57 


hypostyle  hall  at  Goorneh,  the  shaft  is  divided  in  three 

parts,  the  middle  one  being  smooth  and  covered  with 

sculptures,  while  the  upper  and  lower  divisions  are 

formed  of  clustered  stems.  In  the  temple  of  Khonsu, 

in  the  side  aisles  of  the  hypostyle  hall  of  Karnak, 

and  in  the  ‘portico  of 

Medinet  Haboo,  the  shaft 

is  quite  smooth,  the  fringe 

alone  being  retained  below 

the  top  bands,  while  a 

slight  ridge  between  each 

of  the  three  bands  recalls 

the  original  stems  (fig.  67). 

The  capital  underwent  a 

like  process  of  degradation. 

At  Beni  Hassan,  it  is  finely 

clustered  throughout  its 

height.  In  the  processional 

hall  of  Thothmes  III.,  at 

Luxor,  and  at  Medamot,  a 

circle  of  small  pointed  leaves 

and  channellings  around 

the  base  lessens  the  effect, 

and  reduces  it  to  a mere  FiS;  67.— Column  in  the  side 

aisles  of  the  hypostyle  hall  at 
grooved  and  truncated  cone.  Karnak. 

In  the  hypostyle  hall  of 

Karnak,  at  Abydos,  at  the  Ramesseum,  and  at 
Medinet  Haboo,  various  other  ornaments,  as  tri- 
angular leaves,  hieroglyphic  inscriptions,  or  bands 
of  cartouches  flanked  by  ursei,  fill  the  space  thus 
unfortunately  obtained.  Neither  is  the  abacus  hidden 
as  in  the  lotus  flower  capital,  but  stands  out 


58 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


boldly,  and  displays  the  cartouch  of  the  royal 
founder. 

III.  Hathor-headed  Columns. — We  find  examples 
of  the  Hathor-headed  column  dating  from  ancient  times, 
as  at  Dayr-el-Baharee  ; but  this  order  is  best  known 
in  buildings  of  the  Ptolemaic  period,  as  at  Contra- 
Latopolis,  Philae,  and  Denderah.  The  shaft  and  the 
base  present  no  special  characteristics.  They  resemble 
those  of  the  Lotus  Flower  columns. 
The  capital  is  in  two  divisions. 
Below  we  have  a square  block, 
bearing  on  each  face  a woman’s 
head  in  high  relief.  The  woman 
has  the  ears  of  a heifer.  Her  hair, 
confined  over  the  brow  by  three 
vertical  bands,  falls  behind  the 
ears,  and  hangs  long  on  the 
shoulders.  Each  head  supports  a 
fluted  cornice,  on  which  stands  a 
naos  framed  between  two  volutes, 
and  crowned  by  a slender  abacus 
(fig.  68).  Thus  each  column  has 

for  its  capital  four  heads  of 

Hathor.  Seen  from  a distance,  it  at  once  recalls  the 
form  of  the  sistrum,  so  frequently  represented  in 
the  bas-reliefs  as  held  in  the  hands  of  queens  and 

goddesses.  It  is  in  fact  a sistrum,  in  which  the 

regular  proportions  of  the  parts  are  disregarded.  The 
handle  is  gigantic,  while  the  upper  part  of  the  instru- 
ment is  unduly  reduced.  This  notion  so  pleased  the 
Egyptian  fancy  that  architects  did  not  hesitate  to  com- 
bine the  sistrum  design  with  elements  borrowed  from 


Fig.  68. 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


59 


other  orders.  The  four  heads  of  Hathor  placed  above 
a Lotus  Flower  capital,  furnished  Nectanebo  with  a 
composite  type  for  his  pavilion  at  Philse  (fig.  69).  I 
cannot  say  that  the  compound  is  very  satisfactory,  but 
the  column  is  in  reality  less  ugly  than  it  appears  in 
engravings. 

Shafts  of  columns  were  regulated  by  no  fixed  rules  of 
proportion  or  arrangement.  The  architect  might,  if  he 
chose,  make  use  of  equal  heights 
with  very  different  diameters,  and, 
regardless  of  any  considerations  apart 
from  those  of  general  harmony, 
might  design  the  various  parts  ac- 
cording to  whatever  scale  best  suited 
him.  The  dimensions  of  the  capital 
had  no  invariable  connection  with 
those  of  the  shaft,  nor  was  the 
height  of  the  shaft  dependent  on  the 
diameter  of  the  column.  At  Karnak, 
the  lotus  flower  columns  of  the 
hypostyle  hall  measure  10  feet  high 
in  the  capital,  and  55  feet  high 
in  the  shaft,  with  a lower  diameter  of  1 1 feet  8 
inches.  At  Luxor,  the  capital  measures  ii|  feet,  the 
shaft  49  feet,  and  the  diameter  at  the  spring  of  the 
base  11^  feet.  At  the  Ramesseum,  the  shaft  and 
capital  measure  35  feet,  and  the  spring  diameter  is 
6^  feet.  The  lotus  bud,  or  clustered,  column  gives 
similar  results.  At  Karnak,  in  the  side-aisles  of 
the  hypostyle  hall,  the  capital  is  10  feet  high,  the 
shaft  33  feet,  and  the  base  diameter  6f  feet.  At  the 
Ramesseum,  the  capital  is  5-J-  feet  high,  the  shaft  24 ^ 


Fig.  69. 


6o 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


feet,  and  the  base  diameter  5 feet  10  inches.  We  find 
the  same  irregularity  as  to  architraves.  Their  height 
is  determined  only  by  the  taste  of  the  architect  or  the 
necessities  of  the  building.  So  also  with  the  spacing 
of  columns.  Not  only  does  the  inter-columnar  space 


Fig.  70. — Section  of  the  hypostyle  hall  at  Karnak  to  show  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  two  varieties  : lotus  flower  and  lotus  bud  columns. 


vary  considerably  between  temple  and  temple,  or 
chamber  and  chamber,  but  sometimes — as  in  the  first 
court  at  Medinet  Haboo — they  vary  in  the  same  portico. 
We  have  thus  far  treated  separately  of  each  type  ; 
but  when  various  types  were  associated  in  a single 
building,  no  fixed  relative  proportions  were  observed. 
In  the  hypostyle  hall  at  Karnak,  the  lotus  flower 
columns  support  the  loftiest  nave,  while  the  lotus 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE.  6 I 

bud  variety  is  relegated  to  the  side  aisles  (fig.  70). 
There  are  halls  in  the  temple  of  Khonsu  where  the 
lotus-bud  column  is  the  loftiest,  and  others  where  the 
lotus  flower  dominates  the  rest.  In  what  remains 
of  the  Medamot  structure,  lotus  flower  and  lotus  bud 
columns  are  of  equal  height.  Egypt  had,  in  short,  no 
definite  orders  like  those  of  Greece.  She  tried  every 
combination  to  which  the  elements  of  the  column  could 
be  made  to  lend  themselves,  without  ever  having 
formulated  rules  precise  enough  to  enable  us  to 
determine  from  one  of  its  members  the  dimensions 
of  the  rest. 


2. THE  TEMPLE. 

Most  of  the  famous  sanctuaries — Denderah,  Edfoo, 
Abydos — were  founded  before  Menes  by  the  Servants 
of  I Tor * Becoming  dilapidated  or  ruined  in  the  course 
of  ages,  they  have  been  restored,  rebuilt,  remodelled, 
one  after  the  other,  till  nothing  remains  of  the  primitive 
design  to  show  us  what  the  first  Egyptian  architecture 
was  like.  The  funerary  temples  built  by  the  kings  of 
the  Fourth  Dynasty  have  left  some  traces.  That  of 
the  second  pyramid  of  Gizeh  was  so  far  preserved  at 
the  beginning  of  the  last  century,  that  Maillet  saw 
four  large  pillars  standing.  It  is  now  almost  entirely 
destroyed ; but  this  loss  has  been  more  than  com- 
pensated by  the  discovery,  in  1853,  of  a temple  situate 

* Hor-shesu,  “ followers,”  or  “servants  of  Horus,”  are  mentioned 
in  the  Turin  papyrus  as  the  predecessors  of  Mena,  and  are  referred  to 
in  monumental  inscriptions  as  representing  the  pre-historic  people  of 
Egypt.  It  is  to  the  Hor-shesu  that  Professors  Maspero  and  Mariette 
attribute  the  making  of  the  Great  Sphinx.  [Translator’s  note.] 


6 2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


about  fifty  yards  to  the  southward  of  the  sphinx  (fig.  71). 
The  fagade  is  still  hidden  by  the  sand,  and  the  inside 
is  but  partly  uncovered.  The  core  masonry  is  of  fine 
Toorah  limestone.  The  casing,  pillars,  architraves,  and 
roof  were  constructed  with  immense  blocks  of  alabaster 
or  red  granite  (Note  9).  The  plan  is  most  simple  : 
In  the  middle  (a)  is  a great  hall  in  shape  of  the 

letter  T,  adorned 
with  sixteen  square 
pillars  1 6 feet  in 
height;  at  the  north- 
west corner  of  this 
hall  is  a narrow 
passage  on  an  in- 
clined plane  (b),  by 
which  the  building 
is  now  entered  ; at 
the  south-west 
corner  is  a recess 
which  contains  six 
niches,  in  pairs  one 
over  the  other.  A 
long  gallery  (d),  opening  at  each  end  into  a square 
chamber,  now  filled  with  rubbish  (e,  e),  completes  the 
plan.  Without  any  main  door,  without  windows, 
and  entered  through  a passage  too  long  to  admit  the 
light  of  day,  the  building  can  only  have  received 
light  and  air  through  slanting  air-slits  in  the  roofing, 
of  which  traces  are  yet  visible  on  the  tops  of  the 
walls  ( c , e ) on  each  side  of  the  main  hall  (Note  10). 
Inscriptions,  bas-reliefs,  paintings,  such  as  we  are 
accustomed  to  find  everywhere  in  Egypt,  are  all 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


63 


wanting ; and  yet  these  bare  walls  produce  as  great 
an  impression  upon  the  spectator  as  the  most  richly 
decorated  temples  of  Thebes.*  Not  only  grandeur 
but  sublimity  has  been  achieved  in  the  mere  juxta- 
position of  blocks  of  granite  and  alabaster,  by  means 
of  purity  of  line,  and  by  exactness  of  proportion. 

Some  few  scattered  ruins  in  Nubia,  the  Fayoom,  and 
Sinai,  do  not  suffice  to  prove  whether  the  temples  of 
the  Twelfth  Dynasty  merited  the  praises  lavished  on 
them  in  contemporary  inscriptions.  Those  of  the 
Theban  kings,  of  the  Ptolemies,  and  of  the  Caesars  which 
are  yet  standing  are  in  some  cases  nearly  perfect,  while 
almost  all  are  easy  of  restoration  to  those  who  con- 
scientiously study  them  upon  the  spot.  At  first  sight, 
they  seem  to  present  an  infinite  variety  as  to  arrange- 
ment; but  on  a closer  view  they  are  found  to  conform 
to  a single  type.  We  will  begin  with  the  sanctuary. 
This  is  a low,  small,  obscure,  rectangular  chamber, 
inaccessible  to  all  save  Pharaoh  and  the  priests.  It 
habitually  contained  neither  statue  nor  emblem,  but 
only  the  sacred  bark,  or  a tabernacle  of  painted 
wood  placed  upon  a pedestal.  A niche  in  the  wall, 
or  an  isolated  shrine  formed  of  a single  block  of 
stone,  received  on  certain  days  the  statue,  or  inanimate 
symbol  of  the  local  god,  or  the  living  animal,  or  the 
image  of  the  animal,  sacred  to  that  god.  A temple 
must  necessarily  contain  this  one  chamber ; and  if  it 

* That  is,  as  we  now  see  it;  but  that  it  was  originally  decorated  with 
statues,  etc.,  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  one  almost  perfect  portrait- 
statue  of  Khafra,  and  the  remains  of  eight  others,  were  found  in  the 
temple,  besides  some  large  syenite  figures  of  cynocephali ; these  last 
being  the  earliest  known  examples  of  figures  of  sacred  animals. 
[Translator’s  note.] 


64 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


contained  but  this  one  chamber,  it  would  be  no  less 
a temple  than  the  most  complex  buildings.  Very 
rarely,  however,  especially  in  large  towns,  was  the 
service  of  the  gods  thus  limited  to  the  strictly  neces- 
sary. Around  the  sanctuary,  or  “ divine  house,”  was 
grouped  a series  of  chambers  in  which  sacrificial  and 
ceremonial  objects  were  stored,  as  flowers,  perfumes, 
stuffs,  and  precious  vessels.  In  advance  of  this  block 
of  buildings  were  next  built  one  or  more  halls  supported 
on  columns;  and  in  advance  of  these  came  a courtyard, 
where  the  priests  and  devotees  assembled.  This  court- 
yard was  surrounded  by  a colonnade  to  which  the 
public  had  access,  and  was  entered  through  a gateway 
flanked  by  two  towers,  in  front  of  which  were  placed 
statues,  or  obelisks;  the  whole  being  surrounded  by  an 
enclosure  wall  of  brickwork,  and  approached  through  an 
avenue  of  sphinxes.  Every  Pharaoh  was  free  to  erect 
a hall  still  more  sumptuous  in  front  of  those  which  his 
predecessors  had  built  ; and  what  he  did,  others  might 
do  after  him.  Thus,  successive  series  of  chambers  and 
courts,  of  pylons  and  porticoes,  were  added  reign  after 
reign  to  the  original  nucleus  ; and — vanity  or  piety 
prompting  the  work — the  temple  continued  to  increase 
in  every  direction,  till  space  or  means  were  wanting. 

The  most  simple  temples  were  sometimes  the  most 
beautiful.  This  was  the  case  as  regards  the  sanctu- 
aries erected  by  Amenhotep  III.  in  the  island  of 
Elephantine,  which  were  figured  by  the  members  of 
the  French  expedition  at  the  end  of  the  last  century, 
and  destroyed  by  the  Turkish  governor  of  Assouan  in 
1822.  The  best  preserved,  namely,  the  south  temple 
(fig.  72),  consisted  of  but  a single  chamber  of  sandstone, 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


65 


14  feet  high,  31  feet  wide,  and  39  feet  long.  The 
walls,  which  were  straight,  and  crowned  with  the 
usual  cornice,  rested  on  a platform  of  masonry  some 
8 feet  above  the  ground.  This  platform  was  surrounded 
by  a parapet  wall,  breast  high.  All  around  the  temple 
ran  a colonnade,  the  sides  each  consisting  of  seven 
square  pillars,  without  capital  or  base,  and  the  two 
facades,  front  and  back,  being  supported  by  two 
columns  with  the  lotus  bud  capital.  Both  pillars  and 
columns  rose  direct  from  the  parapet  ; except  on  the 


Fig.  72. 


east  front,  where  a flight  of  ten  or  twelve  steps,  enclosed 
between  two  walls  of  the  same  height  as  the  platform, 
led  up  to  the  cella.  The  two  columns  at  the  head  of 
the  steps  were  wider  apart  than  those  of  the  opposite 
face,  and  through  the  space  thus  opened  was  seen  a 
richly-decorated  door.  A second  door  opened  at  the 
other  end,  beneath  the  portico.  Later,  in  Roman  times, 
this  feature  was  utilised  in  altering  the  building.  The 
inter-columnar  space  at  the  end  was  filled  up,  and 
thus  was  obtained  a second  hall,  rough  and  bare,  but 
useful  for  the  purposes  of  the  temple  service.  These 

5 


66 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


Elephantine  sanctuaries  bring  to  mind  the  peripteral 
temples  of  the  Greeks,  and  this  resemblance  to  one  of 
the  most  familiar  forms  of  classical  architecture  explains 
perhaps  the  boundless  admiration  with  which  they  were 
regarded  by  the  French  savants.  Those  of  Mesheikh, 
of  El  Kab,  and  of  Sharonah  are  somewhat  more 

elaborate.  The  building 
at  El  Kab  is  in  three 
divisions  (fig.  73) ; first, 
a hall  of  four  columns 
(a)  ; next,  a chamber  (b) 
supported  by  four  Hathor- 
headed  pillars ; and  in  the 
end  wall,  opposite  the 
door,  a niche  (c),  ap- 
proached by  four  steps. 
Of  these  small  oratories 
the  most  complete  model 
now  remaining  belongs  to 
the  Ptolemaic  period; 
namely,  the  temple  of 
Hathor  at  Dayrel  Medineh 
(fig.  74).  Its  length  is 
just  double  its  breadth. 
The  walls  are  built  with  a 
batter  inclining  inwards,*  and  are  externally  bare,  save 
at  the  door,  which  is  framed  in  a projecting  border 
covered  with  finely-sculptured  scenes.  The  interior 


Fig.  7"?. — Temple  of  Amenhotep 
III.,  at  El-Kab. 


* That  is  to  say,  the  wall  is  vertical  on  the  inside ; but  is  built 
much  thicker  at  the  bottom  than  at  the  top,  so  that  on  the  outside 
it  presents  a sloping  surface,  retiring  with  the  height  of  the  wall. 
[Translator’s  note.] 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


6/ 


is  in  three  parts  : A portico  (b),  supported  by  two  lotus 
flower  columns ; a pronaos  (c),  reached  by  a flight 
of  four  steps,  and  separated  from  the  portico  by  a wall 
which  connects  the  two  lotus  flower  columns  with  two 
Idathor-headed  pilasters  in  antis;  lastly,  the  sanctuary 
(d),  flanked  by  two  small  chambers  (e,  e),  which  are 
lighted  by  square  openings  cut  in  the  ceiling.  The 
ascent  to  the  terrace  is  by  way  of  a staircase,  very 
ingeniously  placed  in  the 
south  corner  of  the  por- 
tico, and  furnished  with 
a beautiful  open  window 
(f).  This  is  merely  a 
temple  in  miniature ; but 
the  parts,  though  small, 
are  so  well  proportioned 
that  it  would  be  impos- 
sible to  conceive  any- 
thing more  delicate  or 
graceful. 

We  cannot  say  as  much 
for  the  temple  which  the 
Pharaohs  of  the  Twentieth 
Dynasty  erected  to  the  south  of  Karnak,  in  honour  of 
the  god  of  Khonsu  (fig.  75)  ; but  if  the  style  is  not 
irreproachable,  the  plan  is  nevertheless  so  clear,  that 
one  is  tempted  to  accept  it  as  the  type  of  an  Egyptian 
temple,  in  preference  to  others  more  elegant  or 
majestic.  On  analysis,  it  resolves  itself  into  two  parts 
separated  by  a thick  wall  (a,  a).  In  the  centre  of  the 
lesser  division  is  the  Holy  of  Holies  (b),  open  at 
both  ends  and  isolated  from  the  rest  of  the  building 


Fig.  74- 


68 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


by  a surrounding  passage  (c)  io  feet  in  width.  To 
the  right  and  left  of  this  sanctuary  are  small  dark 
chambers  (d,  d),  and  behind  it  is  a hall  of  four  columns 
(e),  from  which  open  seven  other  chambers  (f,  f).  Such 
was  the  house  of  the  god,  having  no  communication 
with  the  adjoining  parts,  except  by  two  doors  (g,  g)  in 
the  southern  wall  (a,  a).  These 
opened  into  a wide  and  shallow 
hypostyle  hall  (h),  divided  into 
three  naves.  The  middle  nave 
is  supported  by  four  lotus  flower 
columns,  23  feet  in  height ; the 
sides  each  containing  two  lotus 
bud  columns  18  feet  high.  The 
roof  of  the  middle  nave  is, 
therefore,  5 feet  higher  than 
that  of  the  sides.  This  eleva- 
tion was  made  use  of  for  light- 
ing purposes,  the  clerestory 
being  fitted  with  stone  gratings, 
which  admitted  the  daylight. 
The  court  (1)  was  square,  and 
surrounded  by  a double  colon- 
nade entered  by  way  of  four 
side-gates  (j,  j),  and  a great  central  gateway  flanked 
by  two  quadrangular  towers  with  sloping  fronts.  This 
pylon  (k)  measures  105  feet  in  length,  33  feet  in  width, 
and  60  feet  in  height.  It  contains  no  chambers,  but 
only  a narrow  staircase,  which  leads  to  the  top  of 
the  gate,  and  thence  up  to  the  towers.  Four  long 
grooves  in  the  fagade,  reaching  to  a third  of  its  height, 
correspond  to  four  quadrangular  openings  cut  through 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


69 


the  whole  thickness  of  the  masonry.  Here  were  fixed 
four  great  wooden  masts,  formed  of  joined  beams  and 
held  in  place  by  a wooden  framework  fixed  in  the 
four  openings  above  mentioned.  From  these  masts 


floated  long  streamers  of 
Such  was  the  temple  of 
Khonsu,  and  such,  in  their 
main  features,  were  the 
majority  of  the  greater 
temples  of  Theban  and 
Ptolemaic  times,  as  Luxor, 
the  Ramesseum,  Medinet 
Haboo,  Edfoo,  and  Den- 
derah.  Though  for  the 
most  part  half  in  ruins, 
they  affect  one  with  a 
strange  and  disquieting 
sense  of  oppression.  As 
attribute  of  the  Egyptian 


various  colours  (fig.  76). 


Fig.  76. 


mystery  was  a favourite 
gods,  even  so  the  plan  of 


Fig.  77. — The  Ramesseum  restored,  to  show  the  rising  of  the  soil. 


their  temples  is  in  such  wise  devised  as  to  lead  gradu- 
ally from  the  full  sunshine  of  the  outer  world  to  the 
obscurity  of  their  retreat.  At  the  entrance  we  find 
large  open  spaces,  where  air  and  light  stream  freely  in. 
The  hypostyle  hall  is  pervaded  by  a sober  twilight  ; the 
sanctuary  is  more  than  half  lost  in  a vague  darkness ; 
and  at  the  end  of  the  building,  in  the  farthest  chambers 


70 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


of  all,  night  all  but  reigns  completely.  The  effect  of 
distance  which  was  produced  by  this  gradual  dimi- 
nution of  light,  was  still  further  heightened  by  various 


Fig.  78. — Crypts  in  the  thickness  of  the  walls,  round  the  sanctuary  at 
Denderah. 


structural  artifices.  The  parts,  for  instance,  are  not 

on  the  same  level.  The  ground  rises  from  the  en- 

trance (fig.  77),  and  one  has  always  a few  steps  to 
mount  in  passing  from  one  part  to  another.  In  the 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


7 I 


temple  of  Khonsu  the  difference  of  level  is  not  more 
than  feet,  but  it  is  combined  with  a lowering  of  the 
roof,  which  in  most  cases  is  very  strongly  marked. 
From  the  pylon  to  the  wall  at  the  farther  end,  the  height 
decreases  continuously.  The  peristyle  is  loftier  than 


Fig.  79. — The  pronaos  of  Edtoo,  as  seen  from  the  top  of  the  eastern 

pylon. 


the  hypostyle  hall,  and  the  hypostyle  hall  is  loftier 
than  the  sanctuary.  The  last  hall  of  columns  and  the 
farthest  chamber  are  lower  and  lower  still.  The  archi- 
tects of  Ptolemaic  times  changed  certain  details  of 
arrangement.  They  erected  chapels  and  oratories  on 
the  terraced  roofs,  and  reserved  space  for  the  con- 


72 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


struction  of  secret  passages  and  crypts  in  the  thickness 
of  the  walls,  wherein  to  hide  the  treasure  of  the  god 
(fig.  78).  They,  however,  introduced  only  two 
important  modifications  of  the  original  plan.  The 
sanctuary  was  formerly  entered  by  two  opposite 
doors  ; they  left  but  one.  Also  the  colonnade,  which 

was  originally  continued 
round  the  upper  end  of  the 
court,  or,  where  there  was 
no  court,  along  the  facade 
of  the  temple,  became  now 
the  pronaos,  so  forming  an 
additional  chamber.  The 
columns  of  the  outer  row 
are  retained,  but  built  into 
a wall  reaching  to  about 
half  their  height.  This  con- 
necting wall  is  surmounted 
by  a cornice,  which  thus 
forms  a screen,  and  so  pre- 
vented the  outer  throng 
from  seeing  what  took  place 
within  (fig.  79).  The  pro- 
naos is  supported  by  two, 
three,  or  even  four  rows  of 
columns,  according  to  the  size  of  the  edifice.  For  the 
rest,  it  is  useful  to  compare  the  plan  of  the  temple  of 
Edfoo  (fig.  80)  with  that  of  the  temple  of  Khonsu, 
observing  how  little  they  differ  the  one  from  the  other. 

Thus  designed,  the  building  sufficed  for  all  the  needs 
of  worship.  If  it  needed  to  be  enlarged,  the 
sanctuary  and  surrounding  chambers  were  generally 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


73 


f*grogyferl 


left  untouched,  and  only  the  ceremonial  parts  of  the 
building,  as  the  hypostyles,  courts,  or  pylons,  were 
attacked.  The  procedure  of  the  Egyptians  under  these 
circumstances  is  best  illustrated  by  the  history  of 

the  great  temple  of  Karnak. 
Founded  by  Usertasen  I., 
probably  on  the  site  of  a still 
earlier  temple  (fig.  8 1 ),  it  was 
but  a small  building,  con- 
structed of  limestone  and 
sandstone,  with  granite  door- 
ways. The  inside  was  deco- 
rated with  sixteen  - sided 
pillars.  The  second  and  third 
Amenemhats  added  some 
work  to  it,  and  the  princes  of 


1^  000  r , . jOO  CmA  I 

Bo  O O ' 1—^  oooo 

J 6 — lp  rj\f)  p_r  I 

-A 


Fig.  8l. — The  temple  of  Karnak  up  to  the  reign  of  Amenhotep  III. 


the  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  Dynasties  adorned  it  with 
statues  and  tables  of  offerings.  It  was  still  unaltered 
when,  in  the  eighteenth  century  b.c.,  Thothmes  I.,  en- 
riched with  booty  of  war,  resolved  to  enlarge  it.  In 
advance  of  what  already  stood  there,  he  erected  two 
chambers,  preceded  by  a court  and  flanked  by  two 
isolated  chapels.  In  advance  of  these  again,  he  erected 


74 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


three  successive  pylons,  one  behind  the  other.  The 
whole  presented  the  appearance  of  a vast  rectangle 
placed  crosswise  at  the  end  of  another  rectangle.  Thoth- 
mes  II.  and  Hatshepsu  * covered  the  walls  erected 
by  their  father  with  bas-relief  sculptures,  but  added 
no  more  buildings.  Hatshepsu,  however,  in  order 
to  bring  in  her  obelisks  between  the  pylons  of 
Thothmes  I.,  opened  a breach  in  the  south  wall,  and 
overthrew  sixteen  of  the  columns  which  stood  in  that 
spot.  Thothmes  III.,  probably  seeing  certain  parts  of 
the  structure  unworthy  of  the  god,  rebuilt  the  first 
pylon,  and  also  the  double  sanctuary,  which  he  renewed 
in  the  red  granite  of  Syene.  To  the  eastward,  he 
rebuilt  some  old  chambers,  the  most  important  among 
them  being  the  processional  hall,  used  for  the  starting- 
point  and  halting-place  of  ceremonial  processions ; and 
these  he  surrounded  with  a stone  wall.  He  also  made 
the  lake  whereon  the  sacred  boats  were  launched  on 
festival  days ; and,  with  a sharp  change  of  axis,  he 
built  two  pylons  facing  towards  the  south,  thus  violating 
the  true  relative  proportion  which  had  till  then  subsisted 
between  the  body  and  the  front  of  the  general  mass  of 
the  building.  The  outer  enclosure  was  now  too  large 
for  the  earlier  pylons,  and  did  not  properly  accord  with 
the  later  ones.  Amenhotep  III.  corrected  this  defect. 
He  erected  a sixth  and  yet  more  massive  pylon,  which 
was,  therefore,  better  suited  for  the  facade.  As  it  now 
stood,  the  temple  surpassed  even  the  boldest  architec- 

* “ Hatshepsu,”  more  commonly  known  as  “ Hatasu  ; ” the  new 
reading  is,  however,  the  more  correct.  Professor  Maspero,  the 
founder  of  a new  school  of  scientific  transliteration,  spells  it 
“ Hatshopsitou.”  [Translator’s  note.] 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


75 


tural  enterprises  hitherto  attempted  ; but  the  Pharaohs 
of  the  Nineteenth  Dynasty  succeeded  in  achieving  still 
more.  They  added  only  a hypostyle  hall  (fig.  82)  and 
a pylon  ; but  the  hypostyle  hall  measured  170  feet  in 
length  by  329  feet  in  breadth.  Down  the  centre  they 
carried  a main  avenue  of  twelve  columns,  with  lotus 
flower  capitals,  being  the  loftiest  ever  erected  in  the 
interior  of  a building,  while  in  the  lateral  aisles,  ranged 
in  seven  rows  on  either 
side,  they  planted  122 
columns  with  lotus  bud 
capitals.  The  roof  of 
the  great  nave  rose  to 
a height  of  75  feet 
above  the  level  of  the 
ground,  and  the  pylon 
stood  some  fifty  feet 
higher  still.  During  a 
whole  century,  three 
kings  laboured  to  per- 
fect this  hypostyle  hall. 

Rameses  I.  conceived 
the  idea ; Seti  I. 
finished  the  bulk  of  the  work,  and  Rameses  II. 
wrought  nearly  the  whole  of  the  decoration.  The 
Pharaohs  of  the  next  following  dynasties  vied  with 
each  other  for  such  blank  spaces  as  might  be  found, 
wherein  to  engrave  their  names  upon  the  columns,  and 
so  to  share  the  glory  of  the  three  founders  ; but  farther 
they  did  not  venture.  Left  thus,  however,  the  monu- 
ment was  still  incomplete.  It  still  needed  one  last 
pylon  and  a colonnaded  court.  Nearly  three  centuries 


Fig.  82. 


76 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


elapsed  before  the  task  was  again  taken  in  hand.  At 
last  the  Bubastite  kings  decided  to  begin  the  colon- 
nades, but  their  work  was  as 
feeble  as  their  resources  were 
limited.  Taharkah,  the  Ethio- 
pian, imagined  for  a moment 
that  he  was  capable  of  rivalling 
the  great  Theban  Pharaohs,  and 
planned  a hypostyle  hall  even 
larger  than  the  first ; but  he 
made  a false  start.  The  columns 
of  the  great  nave,  which  were 
all  that  he  had  time  to  erect, 
were  placed  too  wide  apart  to 
admit  of  being  roofed  over ; so 
they  never  supported  anything, 
but  remained  as  memorials  of 
his  failure.  Finally,  the  Pto- 
lemies, faithful  to  the  traditions 
of  the  native  monarchy,  threw 
themselves  into  the  work  ; but 
their  labours  were  interrupted 
by  revolts  at  Thebes,  and  the 
earthquake  of  the  year  2 7 b.c. 
destroyed  part  of  the  temple, 
so  that  the  pylon  remained  for 
ever  unfinished.  The  history 
of  Karnak  is  identical  with  that 
of  all  the  great  Egyptian  temples. 
When  closely  studied,  the  reason  why  they  are  for 
the  most  part  so  irregular  becomes  evident.  The 
general  plan  is  practically  the  same,  and  the  pro- 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


77 


gress  of  the  building  was  carried  forward  in  the  same 
way ; but  the  architects  could  not  always  foresee 
the  future  importance  of  their  work,  and  the  site  was 
not  always  favourable  to  the  development  of  the 
building.  At 


Luxor  (fig.  83), 
the  progress 
went  on  methodi- 
cally enough  un- 
der Amenhotep 
III.  and  Seti  I., 
but  when  Rame- 
ses  II.  desired 
to  add  to  the 
work  of  his  pre- 
decessors, a bend 
in  the  river  com- 
pelled him  to  turn 
eastwards.  His 
pylon  is  not 
parallel  to  that 
of  Amenhotep 
III.,  and  his 
colonnades  make 
a distinct  angle 
with  the  general 


Fig.  84. — Plan  of  the  Isle  of  Philse. 


axis  of  the  earlier  work.  At  Philae  (fig.  84)  the 

deviation  is  still  greater.  Not  only  is  the  larger 

pylon  out  of  alignment  with  the  smaller,  but  the  two 
colonnades  are  not  parallel  with  each  other.  Neither 
are  they  attached  to  the  pylon  with  a due  regard 
to  symmetry.  This  arises  neither  from  negligence  nor 


78 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


wilfulness,  as  is  popularly  supposed.  The  first  plan 
was  as  regular  as  the  most  symmetrically-minded 
designer  could  wish  ; but  it  became  necessary  to  adapt 

it  to  the  requirements  of 
the  site,  and  the  archi- 
tects were  thenceforth 
chiefly  concerned  to  make 
the  best  of  the  irregu- 
larities to  which  they 
were  condemned  by  the 
configuration  of  the 
ground.  Such  difficulties 
were,  in  fact,  a frequent 
source  of  inspiration  ; and 
Philae  shows  with  what 
skill  they  extracted  every 
element  of  beauty  and  picturesqueness  from  enforced 
disorder. 


The  idea  of  the  rock-cut  temple  must  have  occurred 
to  the  Egyptians  at  an  early  period.  They  carved  the 
houses  of  the  dead  in  the  mountain  side  ; why,  therefore, 
should  they  not  in  like  manner  carve  the  houses  of  the 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


79 


gods  ? Yet  the  earliest  known  Speos-sanctuaries  date 
from  only  the  beginning  of  the  Eighteenth  Dynast}-. 
They  are  generally  found  in  those  parts  of  the  valley 
where  the  cultivable  land  is  narrowest,  as  at  Beni 
Hassan,  at  Gebel  Silsileh,  and  in  Nubia.  All  varieties 
of  the  constructed  temple  are  found  in  the  rock-cut 
temple,  though  more  or  less  modified  by  local  condi- 
tions. The  Speos  Artemi dos  is  approached  by  a 
pillared  portico,  but  con- 
tains only  a square 
chamber  with  a niche  at 
the  end  (c)  for  the  statue 
of  the  goddess  Pakht. 

At  Kalaat  Addah  (fig.  85), 
a flat  narrow  facade  (a) 
faces  the  river,  and  is 
reached  by  a steep  flight 
of  steps ; next  comes  a 
hypostyle  hall  (b),  flanked 
by  two  dark  chambers  (c), 
and  lastly  a sanctuary  in 
two  storeys,  one  above  the 
other  (d).  The  chapel  of 

Hor-em-heb  (fig.  86),  at  Gebel  Silsileh,  is  formed  of 
a gallery  parallel  to  the  river  (a),  supported  by  four 
massive  pillars  left  in  the  rock.  From  this  gallery,  the 
sanctuary  chamber  opens  at  right  angles.  At  Aboo 
Simbel,  the  two  temples  are  excavated  entirely  in  the 
cliff.  The  front  of  the  great  speos  (fig.  87)  imitates  a 
sloping  pylon  crowned  with  a cornice,  and  guarded 
as  usual  by  four  seated  colossi  flanked  by  smaller 
statues.  These  colossi  are  sixty-six  feet  high.  The 


8o 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


doorway  passed,  there  comes  a first  hall  measuring 
130  feet  in  length  by  60  feet  in  width,  which  corresponds 

to  the  usual  peristyle.  Eight 
Osiride  statues,  backed  by  as 
many  square  pillars,  seem  to 
bear  the  mountain  on  their 
heads.  Beyond  this  come 
(1)  a hypostyle  hall;  (2)  a 
transverse  gallery,  isolating 
the  sanctuary,  and  (3)  the 
sanctuary  itself,  between  two 
smaller  chambers.  Eight 
crypts,  sunk  at  a somewhat 
lower  level  than  that  of  the  main  excavation,  are  un- 


Fig.  88. 


Fig.  89. 

equally  distributed  to  right  and  left  of  the  peristyle. 
The  whole  excavation  measures  180  feet  from  the  door- 
way to  the  end  of  the  sanctuary.  The  small  speos  of 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


8 I 


Hathor,  about  a hundred  paces  to  the  northward,  is  of 
smaller  dimensions.  The  facade  is  adorned  with  six 
standing  colossi,  four  representing  Rameses  II.,  and 
two  his  wife  Nefertari.  The  peristyle  and  the  crypts 
are  lacking  (fig.  88),  and  the  small  chambers  are  placed 
at  either  end  of  the  transverse  passage,  instead  of  being 
parallel  with  the 
sanctuary.  The 
hypostyle  hall,  how- 
ever, is  supported  by 
six  Hathor-headed 
pillars.  Where 
space  permitted,  the 
rock-cut  temple  was 
but  partly  excavated  ' ■ ' • ■ 

in  the  cliff,  the  fore- 
part being  constructed  outside 
with  blocks  cut  and  dressed. 

The  speos  then  became  half 
grotto,  half  building.  At  Derr, 
which  is  a hemi-speos,  only 
the  peristyle  is  external  to  the 
cliff ; at  Bayt-el-Waly,  the 
pylon  and  court  are  built ; 
at  Gerf  Hosayn  and  Wady 

Sabooah  the  pylon,  court,  and  hypostyle  hall  are  all 
outside  the  mountain.  The  most  celebrated  and  original 
hemi-speos  is  that  built  by  Queen  Hatshepsu  at  Dayr- 
el-Baharee,  in  the  Theban  necropolis  (fig.  89).  The 
sanctuary  and  the  two  chapels  which,  as  usual,  accom- 
pany it,  were  cut  about  100  ft.  above  the  level  of  the 
valley.  In  order  to  arrive  at  that  height,  slopes  were 


Fig.  90. 


82 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


made  and  terraces  laid  out  according  to  a plan  which 
will  not  be  understood  until  the  site  is  more  thoroughly 
excavated. 

Between  the  hemi-speos  and  the  isolated  temple,  the 
Egyptians  created  yet  another  variety,  namely,  the 
built  temple  backed  by,  but  not  carried  into,  the  cliff. 
The  temple  of  the  sphinx  at  Gizeh,  and  the  temple 
of  Seti  I.  at  Abydos,  may  be  cited  as  two  good 
examples.  I have  already  described  the  former ; the 
area  of  the  latter  (fig.  90)  was  cleared  in  a narrow  and 
shallow  belt  of  sand,  which  here  divides  the  plain  from 
the  desert.  It  was  sunk  up  to  the  roof,  the  tops  of  the 
walls  but  just  showing  above  the  level  of  the  ground. 
The  staircase  which  led  up  to  the  terraced  roof  led  also 
to  the  top  of  the  hill.  The  front,  which  stood  com- 
pletely out,  seemed  in  nowise  extraordinary.  It  was 
approached  by  two  pylons,  two  courts,  and  a shallow 
portico  supported  on  square  pillars.  The  unusual  part 
of  the  building  only  began  beyond  this  point.  First, 
there  were  two  hypostyle  halls  instead  of  one.  These  are 
separated  by  a wall  with  seven  doorways.  There  is  no 
middle  nave,  and  the  sanctuary  opens  direct  from  the 
second  hall.  This,  as  usual,  consists  of  an  oblong 
chamber  with  a door  at  each  end  ; but  the  rooms  by 
which  it  is  usually  surrounded  are  here  placed  side  by 
side  in  a line,  two  to  the  right  and  four  to  the  left ; 
further,  they  are  covered  by  corbelled  vaults,  and  are 
lighted  only  from  the  doors.  Behind  the  sanctuary  are 
further  novelties.  Another  hypostyle  hall  (k)  abuts  on 
the  end  wall,  and  its  dependencies  are  unequally  dis- 
tributed to  right  and  left.  As  if  this  were  not  enough,  the 
architect  also  constructed,  to  the  left  of  the  main  building, 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


83 


a court,  five  chambers  of  columns,  various  passages  and 
dark  chambers — in  short,  an  entire  wing  branching  off 
at  right  angles  to  the  axis  of  the  temple  proper,  with  no 
counterbalancing  structures  on  the  other  side.  These 
irregularities  become  intelligible  when  the  site  is 
examined.  The  cliff  is  shallow  at  this  part,  and  the 
smaller  hypostyle  hall  is  backed  by  only  a thin  partition 
of  rock.  If  the  usual  plan  had  been  followed,  it  would 
have  been  necessary  to  cut  the  cliff  entirely  away,  and 
the  structure  would  have  forfeited  its  special  character- 
istic— that  of  a temple  backed  by  a cliff — as  desired 
by  the  founder.  The  architect,  therefore,  distributed 
in  width  those  portions  of  the  edifice  which  he  could 
not  carry  out  in  length;  and  he  even  threw  out  a wing. 
Some  years  later,  when  Rameses  II.  constructed  a 
monument  in  memoriam  of  himself,  about  a hundred 
yards  to  the  northward  of  the  older  building,  he  was 
careful  not  to  follow  in  his  father’s  footsteps.  Seated 
on  the  top  of  an  elevation,  his  temple  had  sufficient 
space  for  development,  and  the  conventional  plan  was 
followed  in  all  its  strictness. 

Most  temples,  even  the  smallest,  are  surrounded  by 
a square  enclosure  or  temenos.  At  Medinet  Haboo, 
this  enclosure  wall  is  of  sandstone — low,  and  embattled. 
The  innovation  is  due  to  a whim  of  Rameses  III.,  who, 
in  giving  to  his  monument  the  outward  appearance  of 
a fortress,  sought  to  commemorate  his  Syrian  victories. 
Elsewhere,  the  doorways  are  of  stone,  and  the  walls  are 
built  in  irregular  courses  of  crude  bricks.  The  great 
enclosure  wall  was  not,  as  frequently  stated,  intended  to 
isolate  the  temple  and  screen  the  priestly  ceremonies 
from  eyes  profane.  It  marked  the  limits  of  the  divine 


84 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


dwelling,  and  served,  when  needful,  to  resist  the  attacks  of 
enemies  whose  cupidity  might  be  excited  by  the  accu- 
mulated riches  of  the  sanctuary.  As  at  Karnak,  avenues 
of  sphinxes  and  series  of  pylons  led  up  to  the  various 
gates,  and  formed  triumphal  approaches.  The  rest  of 
the  ground  was  in  part  occupied  by  stables,  cellarage, 
granaries,  and  private  houses.  Just  as  in  Europe 
during  the  Middle  Ages  the  population  crowded  most 
densely  round  about  the  churches  and  abbeys,  so  in 
Egypt  they  swarmed  around  the  temples,  profiting  by 
that  security  which  the  terror  of  his  name  and  the 
solidity  of  his  ramparts  ensured  to  the  local  deity.  A 
clear  space  was  at  first  reserved  round  the  pylons  and 
the  walls ; but  in  course  of  time  the  houses  encroached 
upon  this  ground,  and  were  even  built  up  against  the 
boundary  wall.  Destroyed  and  rebuilt  century  after 
century  upon  the  self-same  spot,  the  debris  of  these 
surrounding  dwellings  so  raised  the  level  of  the  soil, 
that  the  temples  ended  for  the  most  part  by  being 
gradually  buried  in  a hollow  formed  by  the  artificial 
elevation  of  the  surrounding  city.  Herodotus  mentions 
this  of  Bubastis,  and  on  examination  it  is  seen  to  have 
been  the  same  in  many  other  localities.  At  Ombos,  at 
Edfoo,  at  Denderah,  the  whole  city  nestled  inside 
the  precincts  of  the  divine  dwelling.  At  El  Kab,  where 
the  temple  temenos*  formed  a separate  enclosure  within 
the  boundary  of  the  city  walls,  it  served  as  a sort  of 
donjon,  or  keep,  in  which  the  garrison  could  seek  a last 
refuge.  At  Memphis  and  at  Thebes,  there  were  as 
many  keeps  as  there  were  great  temples,  and  these 

* Temenos,  i.e.,  the  enclosure  wall  of  the  Temple,  within  which 
all  was  holy  ground. 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


85 


sacred  fortresses,  each  at  first  standing  alone  in  the 
midst  of  houses,  were,  from  the  time  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty,  connected  each  with  each  by  avenues  of 
sphinxes.  These  were  commonly  andro-sphinxes,  com- 


Fig.  91. 

billing  the  head  of  a man  and  the  body  of  a lion  ; but  we 
also  find  crio-sphinxes,  which  united  a ram’s  head  with  a 


Fig.  92. 


lion’s  body  (fig.  91).  Elsewhere,  in  places  where  the 
local  worship  admitted  of  such  substitution,  a couchant 
ram,  holding  a statuette  of  the  royal  founder  between 
his  bent  forelegs,  takes  the  place  of  the  conventional 
sphinx  (fig.  92).  The  avenue  leading  from  Luxor  to 


86 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


Karnak  was  composed  of  these  diverse  elements.  It 
was  one  mile  and  a quarter  in  length,  and  there  were 
many  bends  in  it ; but  this  fact  affords  no  fresh  proof 
of  Egyptian  “ symmetrophobia.”  The  enclosures  of  the 
two  temples  were  not  oriented  alike,  and  the  avenues 
which  started  squarely  from  the  fronts  of  each  could 
never  have  met  had  they  not  deviated  from  their  first 
course.  Finally,  it  may  be  said  that  the  inhabitants  of 
Thebes  saw  about  as  much  of  their  temples  as  we  see 
at  the  present  day.  The  sanctuary  and  its  immediate 
surroundings  were  closed  against  them  ; but  they  had 
access  to  the  faqades,  the  courts,  and  even  the  hypostyle 
halls,  and  might  admire  the  masterpieces  of  their 
architects  as  freely  as  we  admire  them  now. 


3. — Decoration. 

Ancient  tradition  affirmed  that  the  earliest  Egyptian 
temples  contained  neither  sculptured  images,  inscrip- 
tions, nor  symbols  ; and  in  point  of  fact,  the  Temple  of 
the  Sphinx  is  bare.  But  this  is  a unique  example. 
The  fragments  of  architraves  and  masonry  bearing  the 
name  of  Khafra,  which  were  used  for  building  material 
in  the  northern  pyramid  of  Lisht,  show  that  this  primitive 
simplicity  had  already  been  abandoned  by  the  time  of  the 
Fourth  Dynasty.  During  the  Theban  period,  all  smooth 
surfaces,  all  pylons,  wall-faces,  and  shafts  of  columns, 
were  covered  with  figure-groups  and  inscriptions.  Under 
the  Ptolemies  and  the  Caesars,  figures  and  hieroglyphs 
became  so  crowded  that  the  stone  on  which  they  are 
sculptured  seems  to  be  lost  under  the  masses  of  orna- 
ment with  which  it  is  charged.  One  recognises  at  a 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


87 


glance  that  these  scenes  are  not  placed  at  random. 
They  follow  in  sequence,  are  interlinked,  and  form  as 
it  were  a great  mystical  book  in  which  the  official  re- 
lations between  gods  and  men,aswell  as  between  men  and 
gods,  are  clearly  set  forth  for  such  as  are  skilled  to  read 
it.  The  temple  was  built  in  the  likeness  of  the  world, 
as  the  world  was  known  to  the  Egyptians.  The  earth,  as 
they  believed,  was  a flat  and  shallow  plane,  longer  than  its 
width.  The  sky,  according  to  some,  extended  overhead 
like  an  immense  iron  ceiling,  and  according  to  others, 
like  a huge  shallow  vault.  As  it  could  not  remain 
suspended  in  space  without  some  support,  they  imagined 
it  to  be  held  in  place  by  four  immense  props  or  pillars. 
The  floor  of  the  temple  naturally  represented  the  earth. 
The  columns,  and  if  needful  the  four  corners  of  the 
chambers,  stood  for  the  pillars.  The  roof,  vaulted 
at  Abydos,  flat  elsewhere,  corresponded  exactly  with  the 
Egyptian  idea  of  the  sky.  Each  of  these  parts  was, 
therefore,  decorated  in  consonance  with  its  meaning. 
Those  next  to  the  ground  were  clothed  with  vegetation. 
The  bases  of  the  columns  were  surrounded  by  leaves, 
and  the  lower  parts  of  the  walls  were  adorned  with  long 
stems  of  lotus  or  papyrus  (fig.  93),  in  the  midst  of 
which  animals  were  occasionally  depicted.  Bouquets 
of  water-plants  emerging  from  the  water  (fig.  94), 
enlivened  the  bottom  of  the  wall-space  in  certain 
chambers.  Elsewhere,  we  find  full-blown  flowers  inter- 
spersed with  buds  (fig.  95),  or  tied  together  with  cords 
(fig.  96) ; or  those  emblematic  plants  which  symbolise 
the  union  of  Upper  and  Lower  Egypt  under  the  rule  of 
a single  Pharaoh  (fig.  97)  ; or  birds  with  human  hands 
and  arms,  perched  in  an  attitude  of  adoration  on  the 


88 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


sign  which  represents  a solemn  festival ; or  kneeling 
prisoners  tied  to  the  stake  in  couples,  each  couple  con- 


Fig.  93- 


Fig-  94- 


sisting  of  an  Asiatic  and  a negro  (fig.  98).  Male  and 
female  Niles  (fig.  99),  laden  with  flowers  and  fruits, 


Fig.  95- 


Fig.  96. 


either  kneel,  or  advance  in  majestic  procession,  along 
the  ground  level.  These  are  the  nomes,  lakes,  and  dis- 


Fig.  97- 


tricts  of  Egypt,  bringing  offerings  of  their  products  to 
the  god.  In  one  instance,  at  Karnak,  Thothmes  III. 
caused  the  fruits,  flowers,  and  animals  indigenous  to 
the  foreign  lands  which  he  had  conquered,  to  be  sculp- 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


89 


tured  on  the  lower  courses  of  his  walls  (fig.  100). 
The  ceilings  were  painted  blue,  and  sprinkled  with 
five-pointed  stars  painted  yellow,  occasionally  inter- 
spersed with  the  cartouches  of  the  royal  founder.  The 
monotony  of  this  Egyptian 
heaven  was  also  relieved 
by  long  bands  of  hiero- 
glyphic inscriptions.  The 
vultures  of  Nekheb  and 
Uati,  the  goddesses  of  the 
south  and  north,  crowned 
and  armed  with  divine  em- 
blems (fig.  1 01),  hovered 
above  the  central  nave  of 
the  hypostyle  halls,  and  on  the  under  side  of  the  lintels 
of  the  great  doors,  above  the  head  of  the  king  as  he 


passed  through  on  his  way  to  the  sanctuary.  At  the 
Ramesseum,  at  Edfoo,  at  Philae,  at  Denderah,  at 
Ombos,  at  Esneb,  the  depths  of  the  firmament  seemed 
to  open  to  the  eyes  of  the  faithful,  revealing  the 
dwellers  therein.  There  the  celestial  ocean  poured 
forth  its  floods,  navigated  by  the  sun  and  moon,  with 


90 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


their  attendant  escort  of  planets,  constellations,  and 
decans  ; and  there  also  the  genii  of  the  months  and  days 
marched  in  long  procession.  In  the  Ptolemaic  age, 
zodiacs  fashioned  after  Greek  models  were  sculptured 
side  by  side  with  astronomical  tables  of  purely  native 


Trfrr'L. 


Fig.  ioi. 


t'k-kizic'k  ieiki€i?'kicic'k,k"k'k'ki< "kiei 


origin  (fig.  102).  The  decoration  of  the  architraves 
which  supported  the  massive  roofing  slabs  was  entirely 
independent  of  that  of  the  ceiling  itself.  On  these  were 
wrought  nothing  save  boldly  cut  inscriptions,  in  which 
the  beauty  of  the  temple,  the  names  of  the  builder- 
kings  who  had  erected  it,  and  the  glory  of  the  gods  to 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE, 


91 


whom  it  was  consecrated,  are  emphatically  celebrated. 
Finally,  the  decoration  of  the  lowest  part  of  the  walls 
and  of  the  ceiling  was  restricted  to  a small  number 
of  subjects,  which  were  always  similar  : the  most  im- 


Fig.  102. — Zodiacal  circle  of  Denderah. 


portant  and  varied  scenes  being  suspended,  as  it  were, 
between  earth  and  heaven,  on  the  sides  of  the  chambers 
and  the  pylons. 

These  scenes  illustrate  the  official  relations  which 
subsisted  between  Egypt  and  the  gods.  The  people  had 


9 2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


no  right  of  direct  intercourse  with  the  deities.  They 
needed  a mediator,  who,  partaking  of  both  human  and 
divine  nature,  was  qualified  to  communicate  with  both. 
The  king  alone,  Son  of  the  Sun,  was  of  sufficiently 
high  descent  to  contemplate  the  god  in  his  temple,  to 
serve  him,  and  to  speak  with  him  face  to  face.  Sacrifices 
could  be  offered  only  by  him,  or  through  him,  and  in 
his  name.  Even  the  customary  offerings  to  the  dead 
were  conventionally  supposed  to  pass  through  his  hands, 
and  the  family  availed  themselves  of  his  name  ( sutcn  ta 
hotep ) to  forward  them  to  the  other  world.  The  king  is 
seen,  therefore,  in  all  parts  of  the  temple,  standing, 
seated,  kneeling,  slaying  the  victim,  presenting  the 
parts,  pouring  out  the  wine,  the  milk,  and  the  oil,  and 
burning  the  incense.  All  humankind  acts  through 
him,  and  through  him  performs  its  duty  towards  the 
gods.  When  the  ceremonies  to  be  performed  needed 
the  assistance  of  many  persons,  then  alone  do  mortal 
subordinates  (consisting,  as  much  as  possible,  of  his 
own  family)  appear  by  his  side.  The  queen,  standing 
behind  him  like  Isis  behind  Osiris,  uplifts  her  hand  to 
protect  him,  shakes  the  sistrum,  beats  the  tambourine 
to  dispel  evil  spirits,  or  holds  the  libation  vase  or 
bouquet.  The  eldest  son  carries  the  net  or  lassoes  the 
bull,  and  recites  the  prayer  while  his  father  successively 
presents  to  the  god  each  object  prescribed  by  the  ritual. 
A priest  may  occasionally  act  as  substitute  for  the 
prince,  but  other  men  perform  only  the  most  menial 
offices.  They  are  slaughterers  or  servants,  or  they  bear 
the  boat  or  canopy  of  the  god.  The  god,  for  his  part,  is 
not  always  alone.  He  has  his  wife  and  his  son  by  his 
side  ; next  after  them  the  gods  of  the  neighbouring 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


93 


nomes,  and,  in  a general  way,  all  the  gods  of  Egypt. 
From  the  moment  that  the  temple  is  regarded  as  repre- 
senting the  world,  it  must,  like  the  world,  contain  all 
gods,  both  great  and  small.  They  are  most  frequently 
ranged  behind  the  principal  god,  seated  or  standing ; 
and  with  him  they  share  in  the  homage  paid  by  the  king. 
Sometimes,  however,  they  take  an  active  part  in  the 
ceremonies.  The  spirits  of  On  and  Khonu  kneel  before 
the  sun,  and  proclaim  his  praise.  Hor,  Set,  or  Thoth 
conduct  Pharaoh  into  the  presence  of  his  father  Amen- 
Ra,  or  perform  the  functions  elsewhere  assigned  to  the 
prince  or  the  priest.  They  help  him  to  overthrow  the 
victim  or  to  snare  birds  for  the  sacrifice  ; and  in  order  to 
wash  away  his  impurities,  they  pour  upon  his  head 
the  waters  of  youth  and  life.  The  position  and  functions 
of  these  co-operating  gods  were  strictly  defined  in  the 
theology.  The  sun,  travelling  from  east  to  west, 
divided  the  universe  into  two  worlds,  the  world  of  the 
north  and  the  world  of  the  south.  The  temple,  like 
the  universe,  was  double,  and  an  imaginary  line  pass- 
ing through  the  axis  of  the  sanctuary  divided  it  into 
two  temples — the  temple  of  the  south  on  the  right 
hand,  and  the  temple  of  the  north  on  the  left.  The 
gods  and  their  various  manifestations  were  divided 
between  these  two  temples,  according  as  they  belonged 
to  the  northern  or  southern  hemisphere.  This  fiction 
of  duality  was  carried  yet  further.  Each  chamber 
was  divided,  in  imitation  of  the  temple,  into  two 
halves,  the  right  half  belonging  to  the  south,  and  the 
left  half  to  the  north.  The  royal  homage,  to  be  com- 
plete, must  be  rendered  in  the  temples  of  the  south  and  of 
the  north,  and  to  the  gods  of  the  south  and  of  the  north, 


94 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


and  with  the  products  of  the  south  and  the  north.  Each 
sculptured  tableau  must,  therefore,  be  repeated  at  least 
twice  in  each  temple — on  a right  wall  and  on  a left  wall. 
Amen,  on  the  right,  receives  the  corn,  the  wine,  the 
liquids  of  the  south  ; while  on  the  left  he  receives  the 
corn,  the  wine,  and  the  liquids  of  the  north.  As  with 
Amen,  so  with  Maut,  Khonsu,  Mentu,  and  many  other 
gods.  Want  of  space  frequently  frustrated  the  due 
execution  of  this  scheme,  and  we  often  meet  with  a 
tableau  in  which  the  products  of  north  and  south 
together  are  placed  before  an  Amen,  who  represents 
both  Amen  of  the  south  and  Amen  of  the  north.  These 


tableaux  were  not  overcrowded.  The  wall-surface  in- 
tended to  be  covered  was  marked  off  below  by  a line 
carried  just  above  the  ground  level  decoration,  and  was 
bounded  above  by  the  usual  cornice,  or  by  a frieze. 
This  frieze  might  be  composed  of  uraei,  or  of  bunches 
of  lotus;  or  of  royal  cartouches  (fig.  103)  supported 
on  either  side  by  divine  symbols ; or  of  emblems 
borrowed  from  the  local  cult  (by  heads  of  Hathor,  for 
instance,  in  a temple  dedicated  to  Hathor);  or  of  a 
horizontal  line  of  dedicatory  inscription  engraved  in 
large  and  deeply-cut  hieroglyphs.  The  wall  space 
thus  framed  in  contained  sometimes  a single  scene, 
and  sometimes  two  scenes,  one  above  the  other. 
The  wall  must  be  very  lofty  if  this  number  is  ex- 


Fig.  103. 


departures  from  decorative 
usage  are,  however,  excep- 
tional, and  the  dual  sym- 
metry is  always  observed 
where  space  permits. 


In  Pharaonic  times,  the 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


95 


ceeded.  Figures  and  inscriptions  were  widely  spaced, 
and  the  scenes  succeeded  one  another  with  scarcely 
a break.  The  spectator  had  to  discover  for  himself 
where  they  began  or  ended.  The  head  of  the  king 
was  always  studied  from  the  life,  and  the  faces  of 
the  gods  reproduced  the  royal  portrait  as  closely  as 
possible.  As  Pharaoh  was  the  son  of  the  gods,  the 
surest  way  to  obtain  portraits  of  the  gods  was  to  model 
their  faces  after  the  face  of  the  king.  The  secondary 
figures  were  no  less  carefully  wrought ; but  when  these 
were  very  numerous,  they  were  arranged  on  two  or 
three  levels,  the  total  height  of  which  never  exceeded 
that  of  the  principal  personages.  The  offerings,  the 
sceptres,  the  jewels,  the  vestments,  the  head-dresses, 
and  all  the  accessories  were  treated  with  a genuine 
feeling  for  elegance  and  truth.  The  colours,  moreover, 
were  so  combined  as  to  produce  in  each  tableau  the 
effect  of  one  general  and  prevailing  tone  ; so  that  in 
many  temples  there  were  chambers  which  can  be  justly 
distinguished  as  the  Blue  Hall,  the  Red  Hall,  or  the 
Golden  Hall.  So  much  for  the  classical  period  of 
decoration. 

As  we  come  down  to  later  times,  these  tableaux  are 
multiplied,  and  under  the  Greeks  and  Romans  they  be- 
come so  numerous  that  the  smallest  wall  contained  not 
less  than  four  (fig.  104),  five,  six,  or  even  eight  registers. 
The  principal  figures  are,  as  it  were,  compressed,  so  as 
to  occupy  less  room,  and  all  the  intermediate  space  is 
crowded  with  thousands  of  tiny  hieroglyphs.  The 
gods  and  kings  are  no  longer  portraits  of  the  reign- 
ing sovereign,  but  mere  conventional  types  without 
vigour  or  life.  As  for  the  secondary  figures  and  acces- 


g6  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

sories,  the  sculptor’s  only  care  is  to  crowd  in  as  many 


Fig.  104. — Wall  of  a chamber  at  Denderah,  to  show  the  arrangement 
of  the  tableaux. 

as  possible.  This  was  not  due  to  a defect  of  taste,  but 
to  the  prevalence  of  a religious  idea  which  decided  and 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


97 


enforced  these  changes.  The  object  of  decoration  was 
not  merely  the  delight  of  the  eye.  Applied  to  a piece 
of  furniture,  a coffin,  a house,  a temple,  decoration 
possessed  a certain  magical  property,  of  which  the 
power  and  nature  were  determined  by  each  being  or 
action  represented,  by  each  word  inscribed  or  spoken, 
at  the  moment  of  consecration.  Every  subject  was, 
therefore,  an  amulet  as  well  as  an  ornament.  So  long 
as  it  endured,  it  ensured  to  the  god  the  continuance 
of  homage  rendered,  or  sacrifices  offered,  by  the  king. 
To  the  king,  whether  living  or  dead,  it  confirmed  the 
favours  granted  to  him  by  the  god  in  recompense  for 
his  piety.  It  also  preserved  from  destruction  the  very 
wall  upon  which  it  was  depicted.  At  the  time  of  the 
Eighteenth  Dynasty,  it  was  thought  that  two  or  three 
such  amulets  sufficed  to  compass  the  desired  effect ; but 
at  a later  period  it  was  believed  that  their  number  could 
not  be  too  freely  multiplied,  and  they,  therefore,  put  in 
as  many  as  the  surface  would  contain.  An  average 
chamber  of  Edfoo  or  Denderah  yields  more  material  for 
study  than  the  hypostyle  hall  of  Karnak  ; and  the 
chapel  of  Antoninus  Pius  at  Philse,  had  it  been  finished, 
would  have  contained  more  scenes  than  the  sanctuary 
of  Luxor  and  the  passages  by  which  it  is  surrounded. 

Observing  the  variety  of  subjects  treated  on  the 
walls  of  any  one  temple,  one  might  at  first  be  tempted 
to  think  that  the  decoration  does  not  form  a connected 
whole,  and  that,  although  many  series  of  scenes  must 
undoubtedly  contain  the  development  of  an  historic 
idea  or  a religious  dogma,  yet  that  others  are  merely 
strung  together  without  any  necessary  link.  At  Luxor, 
and  again  at  the  Ramesseum,  each  face  of  the  pylon  is 

7 


98 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


a battle-field  on  which  may  be  studied,  almost  day  for 
day,  the  campaign  of  Rameses  II.  against  the  Kheta, 
which  took  place  in  the  fifth  year  of  his  reign.  There 
we  see  the  Egyptian  camp  attacked  by  night ; the 
king’s  bodyguard  surprised  during  the  march ; the 
defeat  of  the  enemy ; their  flight ; the  garrison  of 
Ivadesh  sallying  forth  to  the  relief  of  the  vanquished  ; 
and  the  disasters  which  befel  the  prince  of  the  Kheta 
and  his  generals.  Elsewhere,  it  is  not  the  war  which 
is  represented,  but  the  human  sacrifices  w'hich  anciently 
celebrated  the  close  of  each  campaign.  The  king  is 
seen  in  the  act  of  seizing  his  prostrate  prisoners  by  the 
hair  of  their  heads,  and  uplifting  his  mace  as  if  about  to 
shatter  their  heads  at  a single  blow.  At  Karnak,  along 
the  whole  length  of  the  outer  wall,  Seti  I.  pursues  the 
Bedaween  of  Sinai.  At  Medinet  Haboo  Rameses  III. 
destroys  the  fleet  of  the  peoples  of  the  great  sea,  or 
receives  the  cut-off  hands  of  the  Libyans,  which  his 
soldiers  bring  to  him  as  trophies.  In  the  next  scene, 
all  is  peace ; and  we  behold  Pharaoh  pouring  out  a 
libation  of  perfumed  water  to  his  father  Amen.  It 
would  seem  as  if  no  link  could  be  established  between 
these  subjects,  and  yet  the  one  is  the  necessary  con- 
sequence of  the  others.  If  the  god  had  not  granted 
victory  to  the  king,  the  king  in  his  turn  would  not  have 
performed  these  ceremonies  in  the  temple.  The 
sculptor  has  recorded  the  events  in  their  order  : — first 
the  victory,  then  the  sacrifice.  The  favour  of  the  god 
precedes  the  thank-offering  of  the  king.  Thus,  on  closer 
examination,  we  find  this  multitude  of  episodes  forming 
the  several  links  of  one  continuous  chain,  while  every 
scene,  including  such  as  seem  at  first  sight  to  be  wholly 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


99 


unexplained,  represents  one  stage  in  the  development 
of  a single  action  which  begins  at  the  door,  is  carried 
through  the  various  halls,  and  penetrates  to  the  farthest 
recesses  of  the  sanctuary.  The  king  enters  the  temple. 
In  the  courts,  he  is  everywhere  confronted  by  reminis- 
cences of  his  victories  ; and  here  the  god  comes  forth 
to  greet  him,  hidden  in  his  shrine  and  surrounded  by 
priests.  The  rites  prescribed  for  these  occasions  are 
graven  on  the  walls  of  the  hypostyle  hall  in  which  they 
were  performed.  These  being  over,  king  and  god 
together  take  their  way  to  the  sanctuary.  At  the  door 
which  leads  from  the  public  hall  to  the  mysterious  part 
of  the  temple,  the  escort  halts.  The  king  crosses  the 
threshold  alone,  and  is  welcomed  by  the  gods.  He  then 
performs  in  due  order  all  the  sacred  ceremonies  enjoined 
by  usage.  His  merits  increase  by  virtue  of  his  prayers; 
his  senses  become  exalted ; he  rises  to  the  level  of  the 
divine  type.  Finally  he  enters  the  sanctuary,  where 
the  god  reveals  himself  unwitnessed,  and  speaks  to  him 
face  to  face.  The  sculptures  faithfully  reproduce  the 
order  of  this  mystic  presentation  : — the  welcoming  re- 
ception on  the  part  of  the  god  ; the  acts  and  offerings 
of  the  king;  the  vestments  which  he  puts  on  and  off  in 
succession ; the  various  crowns  which  he  places  on  his 
head.  The  prayers  which  he  recites  and  the  favours 
which  are  conferred  upon  him  are  also  recorded  upon 
the  walls  in  order  of  time  and  place.  The  king,  and 
the  few  who  accompany  him,  have  their  backs  towards 
the  entrance  and  their  faces  towards  the  door  of  the 
sanctuary.  The  gods,  on  the  contrary,  or  at  least  such 
as  do  not  make  part  of  the  procession,  face  the  entrance, 
and  have  their  backs  turned  towards  the  sanctuary.  If 


IOO 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


during  the  ceremony  the  royal  memory  failed,  the  king 
needed  but  to  raise  his  eyes  to  the 
wall,  whereon  his  duties  were  mapped 
out  for  him. 

Nor  was  this  all.  Each  part  of 
the  temple  had  its  accessory  decora- 
tion and  its  furniture.  The  outer 
faces  of  the  pylons  were  ornamented, 
not  only  with  the  masts  and  streamers 
before  mentioned,  but  with  statues 
and  obelisks.  The  statues,  four  or 
six  in  number,  were  of  limestone, 
granite,  or  sandstone.  They  invari- 
ably represented  the  royal  founder, 
and  were  sometimes  of  prodigious 
size.  The  two  Memnons  seated  at 
the  entrance  of  the  temple  of  Amen- 
hotep  III.,  at  Thebes,  measured  about 
fifty  feet  in  height.  The  colossal 
Rameses  II.  of  the  Ramesseum 
measured  fifty-seven  feet,  and  that 
of  Tanis  at  least  seventy  feet.  The 
greater  number,  however,  did  not 
exceed  twenty  feet.  They  mounted 
guard  before  the  temple,  facing  out- 
wards, as  if  confronting  an  approach- 
ing enemy.  The  obelisks  of  Karnak 
are  mostly  hidden  amid  the  central 
courts ; and  those  of  Queen  Hat- 
shepsu  were  imbedded  for  seven- 
teen feet  of  their  height  in  masses 
of  masonry  which  concealed  their  bases.  These  are 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


I O I 


accidental  circumstances,  and  easy  of  explanation. 
Each  of  the  pylons  before  which  they  are  stationed 
had  in  its  turn  been  the  facade  of  the  temple,  and 
was  thrown  into  the  rear  by  the  works  of  succeeding 
Pharaohs.  The  true  place  of  all  obelisks  was  in  front 
of  the  colossi,  on  each  side  of  the  main  entrance.* 
They  are  always  in  pairs,  but  often  of  unequal  height. 
Some  have  professed  to  see  in  them  the  emblem  of 
Amen,  the  Generator  ; or  a finger  of  the  god  ; or  a ray 
of  the  sun.  In  sober  truth,  they  are  a more  shapely 
form  of  the  standing  stone,  or  menhir,  which  is  raised 
by  semi-civilised  peoples  in  commemoration  of  their 
gods  or  their  dead.  Small  obelisks,  about  three  feet 
in  height,  are  found  in  tombs  as  early  as  the  Fourth 
Dynasty.  They  are  placed  to  right  and  left  of  the 
stela ; that  is  to  say,  on  either  side  of  the  door  which 
leads  to  the  dwelling  of  the  dead.  Erected  before  the 
pylon-gates  of  temples,  they  are  made  of  granite,  and 
their  dimensions  are  considerable.  The  obelisk  of 
Heliopolis  (fig.  105)  measures  sixty-eight  feet  in  the 
shaft,  and  the  obelisks  of  Luxor  stand  seventy-seven 
and  seventy-five  and  a half  feet  high,  respectively. 
The  loftiest  known  is  the  obelisk  of  Queen  Hatshepsu 
at  Karnak,  which  rises  to  a height  of  109  feet.  To 
convey  such  masses,  and  to  place  them  in  equilibrium, 
was  a sufficiently  difficult  task,  and  one  is  at  a loss  to 

* At  Tanis  there  seems  to  have  been  a close  succession  of  obelisks 
and  statues  along  the  main  avenue  leading  to  the  Temple,  without 
the  usual  corresponding  pylons.  These  were  ranged  in  pairs ; i.e., 
a pair  of  obelisks,  a pair  of  statues ; a pair  of  obelisks,  a pair  of 
shrines;  and  then  a third  pair  of  obelisks.  See  Tanis , Part  I.,  by 
W.  M.  F.  Petrie,  published  by  the  Egypt  Exploration  Fund,  1SS4. 
[Translator's  note.] 


102 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


understand  how  the  Egyptians  succeeded  in  erecting 
them  with  no  other  appliances  than  ropes  and  sacks 
of  sand.  Queen  Hatshepsu  boasts  that  her  obelisks 
were  quarried,  shaped,  transported,  and  erected  in 
seven  months  ; and  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt  the 
truth  of  her  statement.* 

Obelisks  were  almost  always 
square,  with  the  faces  slightly  con- 
vex, and  a slight  slope  from  top  to 
bottom.  The  pedestal  was  formed 
of  a single  square  block  adorned 
with  inscriptions,  or  with  cyno- 
cephali  in  high  relief,  adoring  the 
sun.  The  point  was  cut  as  a 
pyramidion,  and  sometimes  covered 
with  bronze  or  gilt  copper.  Scenes 
of  offerings  to  Ra-Harmakhis,  Hor, 
Turn,  or  Amen  are  engraved  on 
the  sides  of  the  pyramidion  and 
on  the  upper  part  of  the  prism. 
The  four  upright  faces  are  generally 
decorated  with  only  vertical  lines 
of  inscription  in  praise  of  the  king 
(Note  11).  Such  is  the  usual  type 
of  obelisk ; but  we  here  and  there 
meet  with  exceptions.  That  of 
Begig  in  the  Fayoom  (fig.  106)  is  in  shape  a rec- 
tangular oblong,  with  a blunt  top.  A groove  upon 
it  shows  that  it  was  surmounted  by  some  emblem  in 
metal,  perhaps  a hawk,  like  the  obelisk  represented  on 

* This  fact  is  recorded  in  the  hieroglyphic  inscription  upon  the 
obelisks.  [Translator's  note.] 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


103 


a funereal  stela  in  the  Boulak  Museum.  This  form, 
which  like  the  first  is  a survival  of  the  menhir,  was 
in  vogue  till  the  last  days  of  Egyptian  art.  It  is  even 
found  at  Axum,  in  the  middle  of  Ethiopia,  dating  from 
about  the  fourth  century  of  our  era,  at  a time  when  in 
Egypt  the  ancient  obelisks  were  being  carried  out  of  the 
country,  and  none  dreamed  of  erecting  new  ones.  Such 
was  the  accessory  decoration  of  the  pylon.  The  inner 
courts  and  hypostyle  halls  of  the  temple  contained  more 
colossi.  Some,  placed  with  their  backs  against  the 
outer  sides  of  pillars  or  walls,  were  half  engaged  in 
the  masonry,  and  built  up  in  courses.  At  Luxor 
under  the  peristyle,  and  at  Karnak  between  each 
column  of  the  great  nave,  were  also  placed  statues  of 
Pharaoh  ; but  these  were  statues  of  Pharaoh  the  victor, 
clad  in  his  robe  of  state.  The  right  of  consecrating  a 
statue  in  the  temple  was  above  all  a royal  prerogative  ; 
yet  the  king  sometimes  permitted  private  persons  to 
dedicate  their  statues  by  the  side  of  his  own.  This 
was,  however,  a special  favour,  and  such  monuments 
always  bear  an  inscription  stating  that  it  is  “by  the 
king’s  grace  ” that  they  occupy  that  position.  Rarely 
as  this  privilege  was  granted,  it  resulted  in  a vast 
accumulation  of  votive  statues,  so  that  in  the  course  of 
centuries  the  courts  of  some  temples  became  crowded 
with  them.  At  Karnak,  the  sanctuary  enclosure  was 
furnished  outside  with  a kind  of  broad  bench,  breast 
high,  like  a long  base.  Upon  this  the  statues  were 
placed,  wfith  their  backs  to  the  wall.  Attached  to  each 
was  an  oblong  block  of  stone,  with  a projecting  spout 
on  one  side  ; these  are  known  as  “ tables  of  offerings  ” 
(fig.  107).  The  upper  face  is  more  or  less  hollowed, 


104 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


Fig.  107. 


which 

cakes, 


and  is  often  sculptured  with  bas-relief  representations 
of  loaves,  joints  of  beef,  libation  vases,  and  other  objects 
usually  presented  to  the  dead  or  to  the  gods.  Those 
of  King  Amoni-Entef-Amenemhat,  at  Boulak,  are  blocks 
of  red  granite  more  than  three  feet  in  length,  the  top  of 
which  is  hollowed  out  in  regular  rows  of  cup-holes, 

each  cup-hole  being  re- 
served for  one  particular 
offering.  There  was,  in 
fact,  an  established  form 
of  worship  provided  for 
statues,  and  these  tables 
were  really  altars  upon 
were  deposited  sacrificial  offerings  of  meat, 
fruits,  vegetables,  and  the  like. 

The  sanctuary  and  the  surrounding  chambers  con- 
tained the  objects  used  in  the  cere- 
monial of  worship.  The  bases  of 
altars  varied  in  shape,  some  being 
square  and  massive,  others  poly- 
gonal or  cylindrical.  Seme  of  these 
last  are  in  form  not  unlike  a small 
cannon,  which  is  the  name  given 
to  them  by  the  Arabs.  The  most 
ancient  are  those  of  the  Fifth 
Dynasty  ; the  most  beautiful  is  one  dedicated  by  Seti  I., 
now  in  the  Boulak  Museum.  The  only  perfect  specimen 
of  an  altar  known  to  me  was  discovered  at  Mensheeyah 
in  1884  (fig.  108).  It  is  of  white  limestone,  hard  and 
polished  like  marble.  It  stands  upon  a pedestal  in  the 
form  of  a long  cone,  having  no  other  ornament  than  a 
torus  about  half  an  inch  below  the  top.  Upon  this 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


105 


pedestal,  in  a hollow  specially  prepared  for  its  recep- 
tion, stands  a large  hemispherical  basin.  The  shrines 
are  little  chapels  of  wood  or  stone  (fig.  109),  in  which 
the  spirit  of  the  deity  was  supposed  at  all  times  to 
dwell,  and  which,  on  ceremonial  occasions,  contained 
his  image.  The  sacred  barks  were  built  after  the 
model  of  the  Bari,  or  boat,  in  which  the  sun  per- 


Fig.  109. — Naos  of  wood  in  the  Museum  at  Turin. 


formed  his  daily  course.  The  shrine  was  placed 
amidship  of  the  boat,  and  covered  with  a veil,  or 
curtain,  to  conceal  its  contents  from  all  spectators. 
The  crew  were  also  represented,  each  god  being  at 
his  post  of  duty,  the  pilot  at  the  helm,  the  look-out  at 
the  prow,  the  king  upon  his  knees  before  the  door  of 
the  shrine.  We  have  not  as  yet  discovered  any  of  the 
statues  employed  in  the  ceremonial,  but  we  know  what 


io6 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


they  were  like,  what  part  they  played,  and  of  what 
materials  they  were  made.  They  were  animated,  and 
in  addition  to  their  bodies  of  stone,  metal,  or  wood, 
they  had  each  a soul  magically  derived  from  the  soul 
of  the  divinity  which  they  represented.  They  spoke, 
moved,  acted — not  metaphorically,  but  actually.  The 
later  Ramessides  ventured  upon  no  enterprises  without 
consulting  them.  They  stated  their  difficulties,  and 
the  god  replied  to  each  question  by  a movement  of  the 
head.  According  to  the  Stela  of  Bakhtan,*  a statue  of 
Khonsu  places  its  hands  four  times  on  the  nape  of  the 
neck  of  another  statue,  so  transmitting  the  power  of 
expelling  demons.  It  was  after  a conversation  with  the 
statue  of  Amen  in  the  dusk  of  the  sanctuary,  that 
Queen  Hatshepsu  despatched  her  squadron  to  the  shores 
of  the  Land  of  Incense. f Theoretically,  the  divine  soul 

* This  celebrated  tablet,  preserved  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale, 
Paris,  has  been  frequently  translated,  and  is  the  subject  of  a valuable 
treatise  by  the  late  Vicomte  de  Rouge.  It  was  considered  authentic 
till  Dr.  Ermann,  in  an  admirable  paper  contributed  to  the  Zeitschrift , 
1883,  showed  it  to  have  been  a forgery  concocted  by  the  priests  of 
Khonsu  during  the  Twentieth  Dynasty.  (See  Maspero’s  Hist.  Andante 
des  Pcnples  de  /' Orient,  chap,  vi.,  pp.  287,  8.  Fourth  Edition.  See  also 
Sir  Erasmus  Wilson's  Egypt  of  the  Past,  chap,  vii.)  [Translator’s 
note.] 

j The  Land  of  Incense,  called  also  in  the  inscriptions  “The  Land 
of  Punt,”  wras  the  country  from  which  the  Egyptians  imported  spices, 
precious  woods,  gums,  etc.  It  is  supposed  to  represent  that  part  of 
the  African  coast  south  of  Abyssinia,  which  lies  between  Bab-el- 
Mandeb  and  Cape  Guardafui.  Queen  Hatshepsu's  famous  expedition 
is  represented  in  a series  of  coloured  bas-relief  sculptures  on  the 
walls  of  her  great  temple  at  Dayr-el-Baharee,  all  of  which  are  repro- 
duced in  Dr.  Diimichen’s  great  work,  The  Fleet  of  an  Egyptian 
Queen.  For  a full  account  of  this  temple,  its  decoration,  and  the 
expedition  of  Hatshepsu,  see  Sir  Erasmus  Wilson’s  Egypt  of  the 
Past,  chap.  vi.  [Translator’s  note.] 


RELIGIOUS  ARCHITECTURE. 


107 


of  the  image  was  understood  to  be  the  only  miracle 
worker ; practically,  its  speech  and  motion  were  the 
results  of  a pious  fraud.  Interminable  avenues  of 
sphinxes,  gigantic  obelisks,  massive  pylons,  halls  of  a 
hundred  columns,  m}’sterious  chambers  of  perpetual 
night — in  a word,  the  whole  Egyptian  temple  and  its 
dependencies — were  built  by  way  of  a hiding-place  for  a 
performing  puppet,  of  which  the  wires  were  worked  by 
a priest. 


CHAPTER  III. 

TOMBS. 

The  Egyptians  regarded  man  as  composed  of  various 
different  entities,  each  having  its  separate  life  and  func- 
tions. First,  there  was  the  body  ; then  the  Ka,  or 
double,  which  was  a less  solid  duplicate  of  the  corporeal 
form — a coloured  but  ethereal  projection  of  the  indi- 
vidual, reproducing  him  feature  for  feature.  The 
double  of  a child  was  as  a child  ; the  double  of  a 
woman  was  as  a woman ; the  double  of  a man  was 
as  a man.  After  the  double  (Ka)  came  the  Soul  (Bi 
or  Ba),  which  was  popularly  imagined  and  represented 
as  a bird;  after  the  Soul  came  the  " Khoo,"  or 
“ the  Luminous,”  a spark  from  the  fire  divine.  None 
of  these  elements  were  in  their  own  nature  imperish- 
able. Left  to  themselves,  they  would  hasten  to  disso- 
lution, and  the  man  would  thus  die  a second  time ; that 
is  to  say,  he  would  be  annihilated.  The  piety  of  the 
survivors  found  means,  however,  to  avert  this  cata- 
strophe. By  the  process  of  embalmment,  they  could  for 
ages  suspend  the  decomposition  of  the  body  ; while  by 
means  of  prayer  and  offerings,  they  saved  the  Double, 
the  Soul,  and  the  “ Luminous  ” from  the  second  death, 
and  secured  to  them  all  that  was  necessary  for  the 
prolongation  of  their  existence.  The  Double  never  left 
the  place  where  the  mummy  reposed  ; but  the  Soul  and 


TOMBS. 


109 


the  “ Khoo  ” went  forth  to  follow  the  gods.  They, 
however,  kept  perpetually  returning,  like  travellers  who 
come  home  after  an  absence.  The  tomb  was  therefore 
a dwelling-house,  the  “ Eternal  House  ” of  the  dead, 
compared  with  which  the  houses  of  the  living  were  but 
wayside  inns  ; and  these  Eternal  Houses  were  built 
after  a plan  which  exactly  corresponded  to  the  Egyptian 
idea  of  the  after-life.  The  Eternal  House  must  always 
include  the  private  rooms  of  the  Soul,  which  were 
closed  on  the  day  of  burial,  and  which  no  living  being 
could  enter  without  being  guilty  of  sacrilege.  It  must 
also  contain  the  reception  rooms  of  the  Double,  where 
priests  and  friends  brought  their  wishes  or  their  offer- 
ings ; the  two  being  connected  by  a passage*  of  more 
or  less  length.  The  arrangement  of  these  three  parts 
varied  according  to  the  period,  the  place,  the  nature  of 
the  ground,  and  the  caprice  of  each  person.  The  rooms 
accessible  to  the  living  were  frequently  built  above 
ground,  and  formed  a separate  edifice.  Sometimes  they 
were  excavated  in  the  mountain  side,  as  well  as  the 
tomb  itself.  Sometimes,  again,  the  vault  where  the 
mummy  lay  hidden,  and  the  passages  leading  to  that 
vault,  rvere  in  one  place,  while  the  place  of  prayer  and 
offering  stood  far  off  in  the  plain.  But  whatever  variety 
there  may  be  found  as  to  detail  and  arrangement,  the 
principle  is  always  the  same.  The  tomb  is  a dwelling, 
and  it  is  constructed  in  such  wise  as  may  best  promote 
the  well-being,  and  ensure  the  preservation,  of  the  dead. 

* These  three  parts  are  (1)  the  chapel,  (2)  the  passage,  or  shaft, 
(3)  the  sepulchral  vault.  If  the  latter  was  below  the  level  of  the  chapel, 
as  in  the  time  of  the  Ancient  Empire,  the  communication  was  by 
a sloping  or  vertical  shaft.  [Translator's  note.] 


I IO 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


I. — Mastabas. 

The  most  ancient  monumental  tombs  are  found  in 
the  necropolis  of  Memphis,  between  Aboo  Roash  and 
Dashoor,*  and  belong  to  the  Mastaba  type  (Note  12). 
The  mastaba  (fig.  1 10)  is  a quadrangular  building,  which 
from  a distance  might  be  taken  for  a truncated  pyramid. 
Many  mastabas  are  from  30  to  40  feet  in  height,  150 
feet  in  length,  and  80  feet  in  width  ; while  others  do 
not  exceed  10  feet  in  height  or  15  feet  in  length. 
The  faces  are  symmetrically  inclined  and  general!}' 
smooth,  though  sometimes  the  courses  retreat  like  steps. 

The  materials  em- 
ployed are  stone  or 
brick.  The  stone 
is  always  limestone, 
cut  in  blocks  about 
two  and  a half  feet 
long,  two  feet  high,  and  twenty  inches  thick.  Three 
sorts  of  limestone  were  employed  : for  the  best  tombs, 
the  fine  white  limestone  of  Toorah,  or  the  com- 
pact siliceous  limestone  of  Sakkarah  ; for  ordinary 
tombs,  the  marly  limestone  of  the  Libyan  hills.  This 
last,  impregnated  with  salt  and  veined  with  crystalline 
gypsum,  is  a friable  material,  and  unsuited  for  orna- 
mentation. The  bricks  are  of  two  kinds,  both  being 
merely  sun-dried.  The  most  ancient  kind,  which  ceased 
to  be  used  about  the  time  of  the  Sixth  Dynasty,  is 
small  (87  x 4-3  x 5-5  inches),  yellowish,  and  made  of 
nothing  but  sand,  mixed  with  a little  clay  and  grit. 

* I adhere  to  the  spelling  of  “ Murray’s  Handbook,”  for  the  reasons 
given  in  the  Preface  ; but  the  correct  transliteration  of  this  name 
is  Dahshoor.  [Translator’s  note.] 


TOMBS. 


I I I 


The  later  kind  is  of  mud  mixed  with  straw,  black,  com- 
pact, carefully  moulded,  and  of  a fair  size  (15*0  x 
x 5 -5  inches).  The  style  of  the  internal  construction 
differs  according  to  the  material  employed  by  the  archi- 
tect. In  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  the  stone  mastabas  are 
but  outwardly  regular  in  construction.  The  core  is  of 
roughly  quarried  rubble,  mixed  with  rubbish  and  lime- 
stone fragments  hastily  bedded  in  layers  of  mud,  or 
piled  up  without  any  kind  of  mortar.  The  brick  mas- 
tabas are  nearly  always  of  homogeneous  construction. 
The  facing  bricks  are  carefully  mortared,  and  the  joints 
inside  are  filled  up  with  sand.  That  the  mastaba 
should  be  canonically  oriented,  the  four  faces  set  to 
the  four  cardinal  points,  and  the  longer  axis  laid  from 
north  and  south,  was  indispensable  ; but,  practically, 
the  masons  took  no  special  care  about  finding  the  true 
north,  and  the  orientation  of  these  structures  is  seldom 
exact.  At  Gizeh,  the  mastabas  are  distributed  according 
to  a symmetrical  plan,  and  ranged  in  regular  streets. 
At  Sakkarah,  at  Abooseer,  and  at  Dashoor,  they  are 
scattered  irregularly  over  the  surface  of  the  plateau, 
crowded  in  some  places,  and  wide  apart  in  others.  The 
Mussulman  cemetery  at  Siout  perpetuates  the  like 
arrangement,  and  enables  us  to  this  day  to  realise 
the  aspect  of  the  Memphite  necropolis  towards  the 
close  of  the  ancient  empire. 

A flat,  unpaved  platform,  formed  by  the  top  course 
of  the  core  (Note  13),  covers  the  top  of  the  mass  of 
masonry.  This  platform  is  scattered  over  with  terra- 
cotta vases,  nearly  buried  in  the  loose  rubbish.  These 
lie  thickly  over  the  hollow  interior,  but  are  more  sparsely 
deposited  elsewhere.  The  walls  are  bare.  The  doors 


I I 2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


face  to  the  eastward  side.  They  occasionally  face 
towards  the  north  or  south  side,  but  never  towards 
the  west.  In  theory,  there  should  be  two  doors,  one 
for  the  dead,  the  other  for  the  living.  In  practice,  the 
entrance  for  the  dead  was  a mere  niche,  high  and 
narrow,  cut  in  the  eastward  face,  near  the  north-east 
corner.  At  the  back  of  this  niche  are  marked  vertical 
lines,  framing  in  a closed  space.  Even  this  imitation 


might.  The  door  ot  the  living  was  made  more  or 
less  important,  according  to  the  greater  or  less  de- 
velopment of  the  chamber  to  which  it  led.  The 
chamber  and  door  are  in  some  cases  represented 
by  only  a shallow  recess  decorated  with  a stela  and 
a tabie  of  offerings  (fig.  ill).  This  is  sometimes  pro- 
tected by  a wall  which  projects  from  the  fagade,  thus 
forming  a kind  of  forecourt  open  to  the  north.  The 
forecourt  is  square  in  the  tomb  of  Kaapir  (fig.  1 12), 
and  irregular  in  that  of  Neferhotep  at  Sakkarah  (fig. 


of  a door  was  sometimes 
omitted,  and  the  Soul  was 
left  to  manage  as  best  it 


Fig.  hi. 


Fig.  1 12. 


TOMBS. 


1 1 3 


1 13).  When  the  plan  includes  one  or  more  chambers, 
the  door  sometimes  opens  in  the  middle  of  a small 
architectural  facade  (fig.  1 14),  or  under  a little  portico 
supported  by  two 
square  pillars  with- 
out either  base  or 
abacus  (fig.  1 1 5). 

The  doorway  is 
very  simple,  the 
two  jambs  being 
ornamented  with 
bas-reliels  representing  the  deceased,  and  surmounted 

by  a cylindrical  drum  en- 
graved with  his  name  and 
titles.  In  the  tomb  of 
Pohounika  at  Sakkarah 
the  jambs  are  two  pilas- 
ters, each  crowned  with 
two  lotus  flowers ; but 


this  example  is,  so  far,  unique. 

The  chapel  was  usually  small,  and  lost  in  the 
mass  of  the  building 
(fig.  1 16),  but  no  precise 
rule  determined  its  size. 

In  the  tomb  of  Ti  there 
is  first  a portico  (a),  then 
a square  ante-chamber 
with  pillars  (b),  then  a 
passage  (c)  with  a small 
room  (d)  on  the  right,  leading  to  the  last  chamber  (e) 
(fig.  117)-  There  was  room  enough  in  this  tomb  for 
many  persons,  and,  in  point  of  fact,  the  wife  of  Ti 


8 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


reposed  by  the  side  of  her  husband.  When  the 
monument  belonged  to  only  one  person,  the  structure 
was  less  complicated.  A short  and  narrow  passage 


Fig.  116. 

led  to  an  oblong  chamber  upon  which  it  opened  at 
right  angles,  so  that  the  place  is  in  shape  of  a T 
(fig.  1 1 8).  The  end  wall  is  generally  smooth;  but 


sometimes  it  is  recessed  just  opposite  the  entrance 
passage,  and  then  the  plan  forms  a cross,  of  which  the 
head  is  longer  or  shorter  (fig.  119).  This  was  the 
ordinary  arrangement,  but  the  architect  was  free  to 
reject  it,  if  he  so  pleased.  Here,  a chapel  consists 
of  two  parallel  lobbies  connected  by  a cross  passage 


TOMBS. 


1 1 5 

(fig.  1 20).  Elsewhere,  the  chamber  opens  from  a corner 
of  the  passage  (fig.  121).  Again,  in  the  tomb  of  Ptah- 
hotep,  the  site  was  hemmed  in  by  older  buildings,  and 
was  not  large  enough.  The  builders  therefore  joined  the 
new  mastaba  to  the  older  one  in  such  wise  as  to  give  them 
one  entrance  in  common, 
and  thus  the  chapel  of  the 
one  is  enlarged  by  absorb- 
ing the  whole  of  the  space 
occupied  by  the  other  (fig. 

122). 

The  chapel  was  the  re- 
ception room  of  the  Double.  It  was  there  that  the 
relations,  friends,  and  priests  celebrated  the  funerary 
sacrifices  on  the  days  prescribed  by  law ; that  is 
to  say,  “ at  the  feasts  of  the  commencement  of  the 


Fig.  120. 


seasons  ; at  the  feast  of  Thoth  on  the  first  day  of 
the  year;  at  the  feast  of  Uaga;  at  the  great  feast 
of  Sothis  ; on  the  day  of  the  procession  of  the  god 
Min  ; at  the  feast  of  shew-bread  ; at  the  feasts  of  the 
months  and  the  half  months,  and  the  days  of  the  week.” 
They  placed  the  offering  in  the  principal  room,  at  the 
foot  of  the  west  wall,  at  the  exact  spot  leading  to  the 


I i 6 EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

entrance  of  the  “eternal  home”  of  the  dead.  Unlike 
the  Kiblah  of  the  mosques,  or  Mussulman  oratories, 
this  point  is  not  always  oriented  towards  the  same 
quarter  of  the  compass.  It  is  often  found  to  the  west, 
but  that  position  was  not  prescribed  by  rule.  In  the 
earliest  times  it  was  indicated  by  a real  door,  low  and 
narrow,  framed  and  decorated  like  the  door  of  an  ordinary 


house,  but  not  pierced  through.  An  inscription  graven 
upon  the  lintel  in  large  readable  characters,  commemo- 
rated the  name  and  rank  of  the  owner.  His  portrait, 
either  sitting  or  standing,  was  carved  upon  the  jambs  ; 
and  a scene,  sculptured  or  painted  on  the  space  above 
the  door,  represented  him  seated  before  a small  round 
table,  stretching  out  his  hand  towards  the  repast  placed 
upon  it.  A flat  slab,  or  offering  table,  built  into  the 
floor  between  the  two  uprights  of  the  doorway,  received 


TOMBS. 


ii  7 

the  votive  meats  and  drinks.  The  living  having  taken 
their  departure,  the  Double  was  supposed  to  come  out 


of  his  house  and  feed.  In  principle,  this  ceremony  was 
bound  to  be  renewed  year  by  year,  till  the  end  of  time ; 
but  the  Egyptians  ere  long  discovered  that  this  could 


I I 8 EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

not  be.  After  two  or  three  generations,  the  dead  of 
former  days  were  neglected  for  the  benefit  of  those 
more  recently  departed.  Even  when  a pious  founda- 
tion was  established,  with  a revenue  payable  for  the 
expenses  of  the  funerary  repast  and  of  the  priests 
whose  duty  it  was  to  prepare  it,  the  evil  hour  of 
oblivion  was  put  off  for  only  a little  longer.  Sooner 
or  later,  there  came  a time  when  the  Double  was  re- 
duced to  seek  his  food  among  the  town  refuse,  and 
amid  the  ignoble  and  corrupt  filth  which  lay  rejected  on 
the  ground.  Then,  in  order  that  the  offerings  conse- 
crated on  the  day  of  burial  might  for  ever  preserve  their 
virtues,  the  survivors  conceived  the  idea  of  drawing  and 
describing  them  on  the  walls  of  the  chapel  (fig.  123). 
The  painted  or  sculptured  reproduction  of  persons  and 
things  ensured  the  reality  of  those  persons  and  things 
for  the  benefit  of  the  one  on  whose  account  they  were 
executed.  Thus  the  Double  saw  himself  depicted  upon 
the  walls  in  the  act  of  eating  and  drinking,  and  he  ate 
and  drank.  This  notion  once  accepted,  the  theologians 
and  artists  carried  it  out  to  the  fullest  extent.  Not 
content  with  offering  mere  pictured  provisions,  they 
added  thereto  the  semblance  of  the  domains  which 
produced  them,  together  with  the  counterfeit  pre- 
sentment of  the  herds,  workmen,  and  slaves  belong- 
ing to  the  same.  Was  a supply  of  meat  required  to 
last  for  eternity  ? It  was  enough,  no  doubt,  to  repre- 
sent the  several  parts  of  an  ox  or  a gazelle — the 
shoulder,  the  leg,  the  ribs,  the  breast,  the  heart,  the 
liver,  the  head,  properly  prepared  for  the  spit ; but  it 
was  equally  easy  to  retrace  the  whole  history  of  the 
animal — its  birth,  its  life  in  the  pasture-lands,  its 


TOMBS. 


I 19 

slaughter,  the  cutting  up  of  the  carcass,  and  the  presen- 
tation of  the  joints.  So  also  as  regarded  the  cakes  and 


Fig.  124. 

bread-offerings,  there  was  no  reason  why  the  whole  pro- 
cess of  tillage,  harvesting,  corn-threshing,  storage,  and 


Fig.  125. 

dough-kneading  should  not  be  rehearsed.  Clothing, 
ornaments,  and  furniture  served  in  like  manner  as 
a pretext  for  the  introduction  of  spinners,  weavers 
goldsmiths,  and  cabinet-makers.  The  master  is  of 


I 20 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


superhuman  proportions,  and  towers  above  his  people 
and  his  cattle.  Some  prophetic  tableaux  show  him  in 
his  funeral  bark,  speeding  before  the  wind  with  all 
sail  set,  having  started  on  his  way  to  the  next  world 
the  very  day  that  he  takes  possession  of  his  new  abode 
(fig.  124).  Elsew’here,  we  see  him  as  actively  superin- 
tending his  imaginary  vassals  as  formerly  he  super- 
intended his  vassals  of  flesh  and  blood.  Varied  and 
irregular  as  they  may  appear,  these  scenes  are  not 
placed  at  random  upon  the  walls.  They  all  converge 
towards  that  semblance  of  a 
door  which  was  supposed  to 
communicate  with  the  interior 
of  the  tomb.  Those  nearest 
to  the  door  represent  the 
sacrifice  and  the  offering  ; the 
earlier  stages  of  preparation 
and  preliminary  work  being 
depicted  in  retrograde  order 
as  that  door  is  left  farther 
and  farther  behind.  At  the 
door  itself,  the  figure  of  the  master  seems  to  await 
his  visitors  and  bid  them  welcome. 

The  details  are  of  infinite  variety.  The  inscriptions 
run  to  a less  or  greater  length  according  to  the  caprice  of 
the  scribe;  the  false  door  loses  its  architectonic  character, 
and  is  frequently  replaced  by  a mere  stela  engraved 
with  the  name  and  rank  of  the  master  ; yet,  whether 
large  or  small,  whether  richly  decorated  or  not  decorated 
at  all,  the  chapel  is  always  the  dining-room — or,  rather, 
the  larder — to  which  the  dead  man  has  access  when  he 
feels  hungry. 


Fig.  126. 


TOMBS 


I 2 I 


On  the  other  side  of  the  wall  was  constructed  a 
hiding-place  in  the  form  of  either  a high  and  narrow 
cell,  or  a passage  without  outlet.  To  this  hiding-place 
archaeologists  have  given  the  Arab  name  of  “ serdab 
Most  mastabas  contain  but  one  ; others  contain  three  or 
four  (fig.  126).  These  scrdabs  communicated  neither 
with  each  other  nor  with  the  chapel  ; and  are,  as  it 
wTere,  buried  in  the  masonry  (fig.  127).  If  connected  at 
all  with  the  outer  world,  it  is  by  means  of  an  aperture 
in  the  wall  about  as  high  up  as  a man’s  head  (fig.  128), 
and  so  small  that  the  hand  can  with  difficulty  pass 


Fig.  127. 


Fig.  128. 


through  it.  To  this  orifice  came  the  priests,  with  mur- 
mured prayers  and  perfumes  of  incense.  Within 
lurked  the  Double,  ready  to  profit  by  these  memorial 
rites,  or  to  accept  them  through  the  medium  of  his 
statues.  As  when  he  lived  upon  earth,  the  man  needed 
a body  in  which  to  exist.  His  corpse,  disfigured  by  the 
process  of  embalmment,  bore  but  a distant  resemblance 
to  its  former  self.  The  mummy,  again,  was  destructible, 
and  might  easily  be  burned, dismembered,  scattered  to  the 
winds.  Once  it  had  disappeared,  what  was  to  become 
of  the  Double  ? The  portrait  statues  walled  up  inside 
the  serdab  became,  when  consecrated,  the  stone,  or 
wooden,  bodies  of  the  defunct.  The  pious  care  of  his 


12  2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


relatives  multiplied  these  bodies,  and  consequently 
multiplied  the  supports  of  the  Double.  A single 
body  represented  a single  chance  of  existence  for 
the  Double  ; twenty  bodies  represented  twenty  such 
chances.  For  the  same  reason,  statues  also  of  his  wife, 
his  children,  and  his  servants  were  placed  with  the 
statues  of  the  deceased,  the  servants  being  modelled  in 
the  act  of  performing  their  domestic  duties,  such  as 
grinding  corn,  kneading  dough,  and  applying  a coat 
of  pitch  to  the  inside  surfaces  of  wine-jars.  As  for 
the  figures  which  were  merely  painted  on  the  walls  of 
the  chapel,  they  detached  themselves,  and  assumed 
material  bodies  inside  the  serdab.  Notwithstanding 
these  precautions,  all  possible  means  were  taken  to  guard 
the  remains  of  the  fleshly  body  from  natural  decay  and 
the  depredations  of  the  spoiler.  In  the  tomb  of  Ti,  an 
inclined  passage,  starting  from  the  middle  of  the  first 
hall,  leads  from  the  upper  world  to  the  sepulchral  vault  ; 
but  this  is  almost  a solitary  exception.  Generally,  the 
vault  is  reached  by  way  of  a vertical  shaft  constructed 
in  the  centre  of  the  platform  (fig.  129),  or,  more  rarely, 
in  a corner  of  the  chapel.  The  depth  of  this  shaft 
varies  from  10  to  100  feet.  It  is  carried  down  through 
the  masonry ; it  pierces  the  rock ; and  at  the  bottom, 
a low  passage,  in  which  it  is  not  possible  to  walk 
upright,  leads  in  a southward  direction  to  the  vault. 
There  sleeps  the  mummy  in  a massive  sarcophagus  of 
limestone,  red  granite,  or  basalt.  Sometimes,  though 
rarely,  the  sarcophagus  bears  the  name  and  titles  of 
the  deceased.  Still  more  rarely,  it  is  decorated  with 
ornamental  sculpture.  Some  examples  are  known 
which  reproduce  the  architectural  decoration  of  an 


TOMBS. 


123 

Egyptian  house,  with  its  doors  and  windows.*  The 
furniture  of  the  vault  is  of  the  simplest  character, — 
some  alabaster  perfume  vases  ; a few  cups  into  which 
the  priest  had  poured  drops  of  the  various  libation 
liquids  offered  to  the  dead  ; some  large  red  pottery  jars 
for  water  ; a head-rest  of  wood  or  alabaster  ; a scribe’s 
votive  palette.  Having  laid 
the  mummy  in  the  sarco- 
phagus and  cemented  the  lid, 
the  workmen  strewed  the  floor 
of  the  vault  with  the  quarters 
of  oxen  and  gazelles  which  had  just  been 
sacrificed.  They  next  carefully  walled  up 
the  entrance  into  the  passage,  and  filled 
the  shaft  to  the  top  with  a mixture  of 
sand,  earth,  and  stone  chips.  Being  pro 
fusely  watered,  this  mass 
solidified,  and  became  an 
almost  impenetrable  body  of 
concrete.  The  corpse,  left  to 
itself,  received  no  visits  now,  Fig.  129. 

save  from  the  Soul,  which 

from  time  to  time  quitted  the  celestial  regions  wherein 
it  voyaged  with  the  gods,  and  came  down  to  re-unite 
itself  with  the  body.  The  funerary  vault  was  the 
abode  of  the  Soul,  as  the  funerary  chapel  was  the 
abode  of  the  Double. 

Up  to  the  time  of  the  Sixth  Dynasty,  the  walls  of 


* The  sarcophagus  of  Menkara,  unfortunately  lost  at  sea  when  on 
its  way  to  England,  was  of  this  type.  See  illustration  No.  19, 
Chapter  III.,  in  Sir  E.  Wilson’s  Egvpt  of  the  Past.  [Translator’s 
note.] 


124 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


the  vault  are  left  bare.  Once  only  did  Mariette  find 
a vault  containing  half-effaced  inscriptions  from  The 
Book  of  the  Dead.  In  1 88 1 , I however  discovered 
some  tombs  at  Sakkarah,  in  which  the  vault  is  deco- 
rated in  preference  to  the  chapel.  These  tombs  are 
built  with  large  bricks,  a niche  and  a stela  sufficing 
for  the  reception  of  sacrificial  offerings.  In  place  of 
the  shaft,  they  contain  a small 
rectangular  court,  in  the  western 
corner  of  which  was  placed  the 
sarcophagus.  Over  the  sarco- 
phagus was  erected  a limestone 
chamber  just  as  long  and  as 
wide  as  the  sarcophagus  itself, 
and  about  three  and  a half  feet 
high.  This  was  roofed  in  with 
flat  slabs.  At  the  end,  or  in 
the  wall  to  the  right,  was  a 
niche,  which  answered  the  pur- 
pose of  a serdab ; and  above 
the  flat  roof  was  next  constructed 
an  arch  of  about  one  foot  and 
a half  radius,  the  space  above 
the  arch  being  filled  in  with 
horizontal  courses  of  brickwork  up  to  the  level  of  the 
platform.  The  chamber  occupies  about  two-thirds  of 
the  cavity,  and  looks  like  an  oven  with  the  mouth  open. 
Sometimes  the  stone  walls  rest  on  the  lid  of  the  sarco- 
phagus, the  chamber  having  evidently  been  built  after 
the  interment  had  taken  place  (fig.  130).  Generally 
speaking,  however,  these  walls  rest  on  brick  supports, 
so  that  the  sarcophagus  may  be  opened  or  closed  when 


TOMBS. 


125 


required.  The  decoration,  which  is  sometimes  painted, 
sometimes  sculptured,  is  always  the  same.  Each  wall  was 
a house  stocked  with  the  objects  depicted  or  catalogued 
upon  its  surface,  and  each  was,  therefore,  carefully 
provided  with  a fictitious  door,  through  which  the 
Double  had  access  to  his  goods.  On  the  left  wall 


he  found  a pile  of  provisions  (fig.  131)*  and  a table 
of  offerings ; on  the  end  wall  a store  of  household 
utensils,  as  well  as  a supply  of  linen  and  perfumes, 
the  name  and  quantity  of  each  being  duly  registered. 
These  paintings  more  briefly  sum  up  The  scenes  de- 

* This  wall  scene  is  from  the  tomb  of  Nenka,  near  Sakkarah.  For  a 
coloured  facsimile  on  a large  scale,  see  Professor  Maspero’s  article 
entitled  “ Trois  Annees  de  Fouilles,”  in  Memoires  cie  la  Mission  Archeo- 
logiqite  Fmnfaise  du  Caive , PI.  2.  1884.  [Translator’s  note.] 


126  EGYPTIAN  ARCH.-EOLOGY. 

picted  in  the  chapels  of  ordinary  mastabas.  Trans- 
ferred from  their  original  position  to  the  walls  of 
an  underground  cellar,  they  were  the  more  surely 
guaranteed  against  such  possible  destruction  as  might 
befall  them  in  chambers  open  to  all  comers ; while 
upon  their  preservation  depended  the  length  of  time 
during  which  the  dead  man  would  retain  possession 
of  the  property  which  they  represented. 


2. — The  Pyramids. 

[For  the  following  translation  of  this  section  of  Professor 
Maspero’s  book  I am  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  Mr.  W.  M. 
Flinders  Petrie,  whose  work  on  The  Pyramids  and  Temples 
of  Gizeh , published  with  the  assistance  of  a grant  from  the 
Royal  Society  in  1883,  constitutes  our  standard  authority  on 
the  subject  of  the  Pyramid-tombs  of  Ancient  Egypt. 

I should  add  that  Mr.  Petrie’s  transcriptions  of  Arab  and 
Egyptian  proper  names  differ  from  those  which  I have  here 
employed  ; but  that,  for  the  sake  of  uniformity,  I have  ventured 
to  alter  them.  Mr.  Petrie  writes  “ Khufu  ” where  I write 
“ Khoofoo,”  “ Abusir”  for  “ Abooseer,"  “ Dashur”  for  “ Dashoor,” 
etc.,  etc.  Mr.  Petrie’s  system  is  doubtless  more  correct ; but 
for  the  reasons  stated  in  the  preface  I have  adopted  the  spelling 
currently  used  in  books  of  travel,  and  by  the  author  of  Murray's 
Handbook  for  Egypt.  Not  to  cause  confusion,  Mr.  Petrie’s  notes 
are  given  separately  at  the  end  of  the  volume. — A.  B.  E.j 

The  royal  tombs  have  the  form  of  pyramids  with  a 
square  base,  and  are  the  equivalent  in  stone  or  brick 
of  the  tumulus  of  heaped  earth  which  was  piled  over 
the  body  of  the  warrior  chief  in  prehistoric  times 
[Note  14).  The  same  ideas  prevailed  as  to  the  souls 
of  kings  as  about  those  of  private  men  ; the  plan  of 
the  pyramid  contains,  therefore,  three  parts  like  the 


TOMBS. 


127 


mastabas, — the  chapel,  the  passage,  and  the  sepulchral 
vault. 

The  chapel  is  always  separate.  At  Sakkarah  no 
trace  of  it  has  been  found ; it  was  probably,  as  later 
on  at  Thebes,  in  a quarter  nearer  to  the  town.  At 
Gizeh,  Abooseer,  and  Dashoor,  the  remains  are  still 
to  be  seen  at  the  east  or  north  fronts  of  the  pyramids. 
It  was  a true  temple,  with  chambers,  courts,  and 
passages.  The  fragments  of  bas-reliefs  hitherto  found 
show  scenes  of  sacrifice,  and  prove  that  the  decoration 
was  the  same  as  in  the  public  halls  of  the  mastabas. 
The  pyramid,  properly  speaking,  contained  only  the 
passages  and  funereal  vault.  The  oldest  of  which  the 
texts  show  the  existence,  north  of  Abydos,  is  that  of 
Sneferoo  ; the  latest  belong  to  the  princes  of  the  Twelfth 
Dynasty.  The  construction  of  these  monuments  was, 
therefore,  a continuous  work,  lasting  for  thirteen  or 
fourteen  centuries,  under  government  direction.  Granite, 
alabaster,  and  basalt  for  the  sarcophagus  and  some 
details  were  the  only  materials  of  which  the  use  and 
the  quantity  was  not  regulated  in  advance,  and  which 
had  to  be  brought  from  a distance.  To  obtain  them, 
each  king  sent  one  of  the  great  men  of  his  court  on  a 
mission  to  the  quarries  of  Upper  Egypt ; and  the  quick- 
ness with  which  the  blocks  were  brought  back  was 
a strong  claim  upon  the  sovereign’s  favour.  The  re- 
mainder was  not  so  costly.  If  the  main  work  was  of 
brick,  they  moulded  the  brick  on  the  spot  with  earth 
taken  from  the  foot  of  the  hill.  If  it  was  to  be  of 
stone,  the  nearest  parts  of  the  plateau  provided  the 
common  marly  limestone  in  abundance  (Note  15). 
They  usually  reserved  the  fine  limestone  of  Toorah 


128 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


for  the  chambers  and  the  casing,  and  this  might  be 
had  without  even  sending  specially  for  it  to  the  opposite 
side  of  the  Nile;  for  at  Memphis  there  were  stores 
always  full,  upon  which  they  continually  drew  for 
public  buildings,  and,  therefore,  also  for  the  royal  tombs. 
The  blocks  being  taken  from  these  stores,  and  borne 
by  boats  to  close  below  the  hill,  were  raised  to  their 
required  places  along  gently  sloping  causeway^.  The 
internal  arrangement  of  the  pyramids,  the  lengths  of 
the  passages  and  their  heights,  were  very  variable ; 
the  pyramid  of  Khoofoo  rose  to  475  feet  above  the 
ground,  the  smallest  was  not  30  feet  high.  The 
difficulty  of  imagining  now  what  motives  determined 
the  Pharaohs  to  choose  such  different  proportions  has 
led  some  to  think  that  the  mass  built  was  in  direct 
proportion  to  the  time  occupied  in  building ; that  is  to 
say,  to  the  length  of  each  reign.  Thus  it  was  supposed 
that  the  king  would  begin  by  hastily  erecting  a pyramid 
large  enough  to  contain  the  essential  parts  of  a tomb ; 
and  then,  year  by  year,  would  add  fresh  layers  around 
the  first  core,  until  the  time  when  his  death  for  ever 
arrested  the  growth  of  the  monument.  But  the  facts 
do  not  justify  this  hypothesis.  The  smallest  of  the 
P3rramids  of  Sakkarah  is  that  of  Unas,  who  reigned 
thirty  years ; but  the  two  imposing  pyramids  of  Gizeh 
were  raised  by  Khoofoo  and  Khafra,  who  continued 
the  one  for  twenty-four  and  the  other  for  twenty-three 
years  to  govern  Egypt.  Merenra,  who  died  very 
young,  has  a pyramid  as  large  as  that  of  Pepi  II., 
whose  reign  lasted  more  than  ninety  years  (Note  16). 
The  plan  of  each  pyramid  was  laid  down,  once  for  all, 
by  the  architect,  according  to  the  instructions  which 


TOMBS. 


129 


he  had  received,  and  the  resources  placed  at  his  dis- 
posal. He  then  followed  it  out  to  the  end  of  the 
work,  without  increasing  or  reducing  the  scale  (Note  17). 

The  pyramids  were  required  to  have  their  four  faces 
to  the  four  cardinal  points,  like  the  mastabas ; but, 
either  from  bad  management  or  neglect,  the  greater 
part  are  not  oriented  exactly,  and  many  vary  distinctly 
from  the  true  north  (Note  18).  Without  speaking  of 
the  ruins  of  Aboo  Roash  or  Zowyet-el-Aryan,  which 
have  not  been  studied  closely  enough,  they  naturally 
form  six  groups,  distributed  from  north  to  south  on 
the  border  of  the  Libyan  plateau,  from  Gizeh  to  the 
Fayoom,  by  Abooseer,  Sakkarah,  Dashoor,  and  Lisht. 
The  Gizeh  group  contains  nine,  including  those  of 
Khoofoo,  Khafra,  and  Menkara,  which  were  anciently 
reckoned  among  the  wonders  of  the  world.  The  ground 
on  which  the  pyramid  of  Khoofoo  stands  was  very 
irregular  at  the  time  of  construction.  A small  rocky 
height  which  rose  above  the  surface  was  roughly  cut 
(fig.  29A)  and  enclosed  in  the  masonry,  the  rest  being 
smoothed  and  covered  with  large  slabs,  some  of  which 
still  remain  (Note  19).  The  pyramid  itself  was  481 
feet  high  and  755  feet  wide,  which  the  injuries  of  time 
have  reduced  to  454  feet  and  750  feet  respectively.  It 
preserved  until  the  Arab  conquest  a casing  of  stones 
of  different  colours  (Note  20),  so  skilfully  joined  that 
they  appeared  like  one  block  from  the  base  to  the  top. 
The  casing  work  was  begun  from  the  top,  and  the  cap 
placed  on  first,  the  steps  being  covered  one  after  the 
other,  until  they  reached  the  bottom  (Note  21).  In 
the  inside  all  was  arranged  so  as  to  hide  the  exact 
place  of  the  sarcophagus,  and  to  baffle  any  spoilers 

9 


130 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


whom  chance  or  perseverance  had  led  aright.  The 
first  point  was  to  discover  the  entrance  under  the 
casing,  which  masked  it.  It  was  nearly  in  the  middle 
of  the  north  face  (fig.  132,  b)  ; but  at  the  level  of  the 
eighteenth  course,  at  about  forty-five  feet  from  the 
ground.  When  the  block  which  closed  it  was  displaced, 
one  entered  on  an  inclined  passage,  41^2  inches  wide 
and  47'6  inches  high,  the  lower  part  of  which  was  cut 
in  the  rock.  It  descended  for  317  feet,  passed  through 
an  unfinished  chamber  (c),  and  ended  sixty  feet  further 

in  a blind  passage. 
This  would  be  a 
first  disappointment 
to  the  spoilers.  If, 
however,  they  were 
not  discouraged,  but 
examined  the  pas- 
sage with  care,  they 
would  find  in  the 
roof,  sixty-two  feet 
distant  from  the  door,  a block  of  granite  (Note  22) 
among  the  surrounding  limestone  (d).  It  was  so  hard 
that  the  seekers,  after  having  vainly  tried  to  break  or 
remove  it,  took  the  course  of  forcing  a way  through  the 
softer  stones  around  (Note  23).  This  obstacle  past, 
they  came  into  an  ascending  passage  which  joins  the 
first  at  an  angle  of  I20J  (Note  24),  and  is  divided  into 
two  branches  (e).  One  branch  runs  horizontally  into  the 
centre  of  the  pyramid,  and  ends  in  a limestone  chamber 
with  pointed  roof,  which  is  called,  without  any  good 
reason.  “The  Queen’s  Chamber”  (f).  The  other,  con- 
tinuing upward,  changes  its  form  and  appearance.  It 


TOMBS. 


1 3 1 

becomes  a gallery  148  feet  long  and  28  feet  high,  built  of 
fine  Mokattam  stone,  so  polished  and  finely  wrought  that 
it  is  difficult  to  put  a “ needle  or  even  a hair  ” into 
the  joints  (Note  25).  The  lower  courses  are  vertical 
over  each  other,  the  seven  others  corbel  forwards, 
until  at  the  roof  they  are  only  twenty-one  inches  apart. 
A fresh  obstacle  arose  at  the  end  (g).  The  passage 
which  led  to  the  chamber  of  the  sarcophagus  was 
closed  by  a slab  of  granite  (Note  26) ; further  on 
was  a small  vestibule  (h)  divided  in  equal  spaces  by 
four  portcullises  of  granite  (Note  27),  which  needed 
to  be  broken.  The  royal  sepulchre  (1)  is  a granite 
chamber  with  a flat  roof,  nineteen  feet  high,  thirty-four 
feet  long,  and  seventeen  feet  wide.  One  sees  there 
neither  figure  nor  inscription  ; nothing  but  a granite 
sarcophagus,  lidless  and  mutilated.  Such  were  the 
precautions  taken  against  invaders ; and  the  result 
showed  that  they  were  effectual,  for  the  pyramid 
guarded  its  deposit  during  more  than  four  thousand 
years  (Note  28).  But  the  very  weight  of  the  materials 
was  a more  serious  danger.  To  prevent  the  sepulchral 
chamber  from  being  crushed  by  the  three  hundred 
feet  of  stone  which  stood  over  it,  they  left  above  it 
five  low  hollow  spaces,  one  over  the  other  (j).  The 
last  is  sheltered  by  a pointed  roof,  formed  of  two 
enormous  slabs  (Note  29)  leaning  one  against  the 
other.  Thanks  to  this  device,  the  central  pressure 
was  thrown  almost  entirely  on  the  side  faces,  and 
the  chamber  was  preserved.  None  of  the  stones  which 
cover  it  have  been  crushed ; none  have  yielded  a 
fraction  since  the  day  when  the  workmen  cemented 
them  into  their  places  (Note  30). 


132 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


The  pyramids  of  Khafra  and  Menkara  were  built  on 
a different  plan  inside  to  that  of  Khoofoo.  Khafra’s  had 
two  entrances,  both  to  the  north,  one  from  the  platform 
before  the  pyramid,  the  other  fifty  feet  above  the 
ground.  Menkara’s  still  preserves  the  remains  of  its 
casing  of  red  granite  (Note  31).  The  entrance  passage 
descends  at  an  angle  of  twenty-six  degrees,  and  soon 
runs  into  the  rock.  The  front  chamber  is  decorated 
with  panels  sculptured  in  the  stone,  and  was  closed  at 


Fig.  133  . — The  Step  Pyramid  of  Sakkarah. 


the  further  end  by  three  portcullises  of  granite.  The 
second  chamber  appears  to  be  unfinished,  but  this  was 
a trap  to  deceive  the  spoilers.  A passage  cut  in  the 
floor,  and  carefully  hidden,  gave  access  to  a lower 
chamber.  There  lay  the  mummy  in  a sarcophagus  of 
sculptured  basalt.  The  sarcophagus  was  still  perfect 
at  the  beginning  of  this  century.  Removed  thence  by 
Colonel  Howard  Vyse,  it  foundered  on  the  Spanish 
coast  with  the  ship  which  was  bearing  it  to  England. 

The  same  variety  of  arrangement  prevails  in  the 
groups  of  Abooseer,  and  in  one  part  of  the  Sakkarah 


TOMBS. 


133 


group.  The  great  pyramid  of  Sakkarah  is  not  oriented 
with  exactness.  The  north  face  is  turned  40  21'  from 
the  true  north.  It  is  not  a perfect  square,  but  is 
elongated  from  east  to  west,  the  sides  being  395  and 
351  feet.  It  is  196  feet  high,  and  is  formed  of  six 
great  steps  with  inclined  faces,  each  retreating  about 
seven  feet ; the  step  nearest  the  ground  is  thirty-seven 
and  a half  feet  high,  and  the  top  one  is  twenty-nine 
feet  high  (fig.  133).  It  is  built  entirely  with  limestone, 
quarried  from  the  neighbouring  hills.  The  blocks  are 
small  and  badly  cut,  and  the 
courses  are  concave,  accord- 
ing to  a plan  applied  both 


Fig.  134. — Plan  of  the  Pyramid  of 
Unas. 


to  quays  and  to  fortresses.  On 
examining  the  breaches  in  the 
masonry,  it  is  seen  that  the 

outer  face  of  each  step  is  coated  with  two  layers, 
each  of  which  has  its  regular  casing  (Note  32). 
The  mass  is  solid,  the  chambers  being  cut  in  the 
rock  below  the  pyramid.  It  has  four  entrances,  the 
main  one  being  in  the  north  ; and  the  passages  form 
a perfect  labyrinth,  which  it  is  perilous  to  enter. 
Porticoes  with  columns,  galleries,  and  chambers,  all 
end  in  a kind  of  pit,  in  the  bottom  of  which  a hiding 
place  was  contrived,  doubtless  intended  to  contain  the 
most  precious  objects  of  the  funereal  furniture.  The 
pyramids  which  surround  this  extraordinary  monument 


134 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


have  been  nearly  all  built  on  one  plan,  and  only  differ 
in  their  proportions.  The  door  (fig.  1 34,  a)  opens  close 
below  the  first  course,  about  the  middle  of  the  north 
face,  and  the  passage  (b)  descends  by  a gentle  slope 
between  two  walls  of  limestone.  It  is  plugged  up  all 
along  by  large  blocks  (Note  33)  which  needed  to  be 
broken  up  before  reaching  the  first  chamber  (c).  On 
leaving  this  chamber,  it  was  carried  for  some  way 
through  the  limestone  rock  ; then  it  passes  between 

four  walls  of  polished  sye- 
nite ; after  which  the  lime- 
stone re-appears,  and  the 
passage  opens  into  the 
vestibule  (e).  The  part 
built  of  granite  is  inter- 
rupted thrice,  at  intervals 
of  two  to  two  and  a half 
feet,  by  three  enormous 
portcullises  of  granite  (d). 
Above  each  of  these  a 
hollow  is  left,  in  which 
the  portcullis  stone  was 
held  up  by  props,  which  left  a free  passage  (fig.  135). 
The  mummy  once  placed  inside,  the  workmen,  as 
they  left,  removed  the  supports,  and  the  portcul- 
lises fell  into  place,  cutting  off  all  communication 
with  the  outside.  The  vestibule  was  flanked  on  the 
east  by  a flat-roofed  serdab  divided  into  three  niches, 
and  encumbered  with  chips  of  stone  swept  hastily  in  by 
the  slaves  at  the  last  moment  when  they  cleared  the 
chambers  to  receive  the  mummy.  The  pyramid  of  Unas 
has  all  three  niches  preserved  ; but  in  that  of  Teti  and 


Fig.  135- 


TOMBS. 


135 


of  Merenra,  the  separating  walls  (f)  have  been  very 
neatly  cut  away  in  ancient  times,  without  leaving  any 
trace  but  a line  of  attachment,  and  a whiter  colour  in 
the  stone  where  it  had  been  originally  covered.  The 
sarcophagus  chamber  (g)  extends  west  of  the  vestibule  ; 
the  sarcophagus  was  placed  there  along  the  west  wall, 
feet  to  the  south,  head  to  the  north  (h).  The  roof  over 
the  two  main  chambers  was  pointed.  It  was  formed  of 
large  beams  of  limestone,  joined  at  the  upper  ends,  and 
supported  below  upon  a low  bench  (1)  which  sur- 
rounded the  chamber  outside  (Note  34).  The  first 


beam  was  covered  by  a second,  and  this  by  a third  ; 
and  the  three  together  (1)  thoroughly  protected  the 
vestibule  of  the  vault  (fig.  136). 

The  pyramids  of  Gizeh  belonged  to  the  Pharaohs  of 
the  Fourth  Dynasty,  and  those  of  Abooseer  to  the 
Pharaohs  of  the  Fifth.  The  five  pyramids  of  Sakkarah, 
of  which  the  plan  is  uniform,  belonged  to  Unas  and 
to  the  first  four  kings  of  the  Sixth  Dynasty,  Teti, 
Pepi  I.,  Merenra,  and  Pepi  II.,  and  are  contemporary 
with  the  mastabas  with  painted  vaults  which  I have 
mentioned  above.  One  is  not  astonished,  therefore,  to 
find  them  inscribed  and  decorated.  The  ceilings  are 


136 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


covered  with  stars,  to  represent  the  sky  and  the  night. 
The  rest  of  the  decoration  is  very  simple.  In  the 
pyramid  of  Unas,  which  is  the  most  ornamented,  the 
decoration  occupies  only  the  end  wall  of  the  funereal 
chamber  ; the  part  against  the  sarcophagus  was  lined 
with  alabaster,  and  engraved  to  represent  great  monu- 
mental doors,  through  which  the  deceased  was  supposed 
to  enter  his  storerooms  of  provisions.  The  figures  of 
men  and  of  animals,  the  scenes  of  daily  life,  the  details 
of  the  sacrifice,  are  not  here  represented,  and,  moreover, 
would  not  be  in  keeping ; they  belong  to  those  places 
where  the  Double  lived  his  public  life,  and  where 
visitors  actually  performed  the  rites  of  offering ; the 
passages  and  the  vault  in  which  the  soul  alone  was  free 
to  wander  could  receive  no  ornamentation,  except  that 
which  related  to  the  life  of  the  soul.  The  texts  are  of 
two  kinds.  One  kind — and  these  are  the  fewest — refer 
to  the  nourishment  of  the  Double,  and  are  literal 
transcriptions  of  the  formulas  by  which  the  priests 
ensured  the  transmission  of  each  object  from  hence  to 
the  other  world  ; this  was  a last  resource  for  him,  in 
case  the  real  sacrifices  should  be  discontinued,  or  the 
magic  scenes  upon  the  chapel  walls  be  destroyed. 
The  greater  part  of  the  inscriptions  were  of  a different 
kind.  They  referred  to  the  soul,  and  were  intended  to 
preserve  it  from  the  dangers  which  awaited  it,  in 
heaven  and  on  earth.  They  revealed  to  it  the  sovereign 
incantations  which  protected  it  against  the  bites  of 
serpents  and  venomous  animals,  the  passwords  which 
enabled  it  to  enter  into  the  company  of  the  good  gods, 
and  the  exorcisms  which  counteracted  the  influence  of 
the  evil  gods.  Just  as  the  destiny  of  the  Double  was 


TOMBS. 


137 


to  continue  to  lead  the  shadow  of  its  terrestrial  life,  and 
fulfil  it  in  the  chapel,  so  it  was  the  destiny  of  the  Soul 
to  follow  the  sun  across  the  sky,  and  it,  therefore, 
needed  the  instructions  which  it  read  on  the  walls  of 
the  vault.  It  was  by  their  virtue  that  the  absorption 
of  the  dead  into  Osiris  became  complete,  and  that  he 
enjoyed  hereafter  all  the  immunity  of  the  divine  state. 
Above,  in  the  chapel,  it  was  a man  and  it  acted  as  a 
man ; here  it  was  a god,  and  it  acted  as  a god. 

The  enormous  rectangular  mass  which  the  Arabs 
call  Mastabat  el  Faraoon,  “ the  seat  of  Pharaoh  ” 


Fig.  137. — Mastabat  el  Faraoon. 


(fig.  137),  stands  beside  the  pyramid  ol  Pepi  II. 
Some  have  thought  it  to  be  an  unfinished  pyramid, 
some  a tomb  surmounted  by  an  obelisk  ; in  reality  it  is 
a royal  mastaba,  the  inside  of  which  is  arranged  on  the 
plan  of  a pyramid.  Mariette  thought  that  Unas  was 
buried  there  ; but  recent  excavations  have  shown  this 
to  be  impossible.  They  have,  on  the  other  hand, 
apparently  shown  that  the  southern  brick  pyramid  of 
Dashoor  belonged  to  Seneferu.  If  this  fact  should  be 
confirmed  by  future  researches,  there  is  some  chance 
that  this  whole  group  is  the  oldest  of  all,  and  that  it 
goes  back  to  the  Third  Dynasty.  The  Dashoor  group 


138 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


furnishes  a curious  variation  from  the  usual  type.  One 
of  the  stone  pyramids  has  the  lower  half  inclined  at 
54°  41',  while  the  upper  part  changes  sharply  to 
42°  59' ; it  might  be  called  a mastaba  (Note  35) 
crowned  by  a gigantic  attic.  At  Lisht,  one  leaves 
the  Old  Kingdom  for  the  Theban  Dynasties,  and  the 
structure  is  again  changed.  The  sloping  passage 
ends  in  a vertical  shaft,  at  the  bottom  of  which  open 
chambers  now  filled  by  the  infiltration  of  the  Nile. 


Fig.  138. — Pyramid  of  Meydoom. 


The  Fayoom  group  belongs  entirely  to  the  Twelfth 
Dynasty ; but  the  pyramids  of  Biahmoo  are  almost 
entirely  destroyed.  The  pyramid  of  Illahoon  has 
never  been  explored,  and  that  of  Meydoom,  violated 
before  the  Ramesside  age,  is  empty.  It  consists  of 
three  square  towers  (Note  39)  with  sides  slightly 
sloping,  placed  in  retreating  stages  one  over  the  other 
(fig.  138).  The  entrance  is  on  the  north,  at  about 
53  feet  above  the  sand.  After  60  feet,  the  passage 
goes  into  the  rock;  at  174  feet  it  turns  level;  at 
forty  feet  further  it  stops,  and  turns  perpendicularly 


TOMBS. 


139 


up  to  the  surface,  opening  in  the  floor  of  a vault 
twenty-one  feet  higher  (fig,  139).  A set  of  beams  and 
ropes  still  in  place  above  the  opening  show  that  the 
spoilers  drew  the  sarcophagus  out  of  the  chamber  in 
ancient  times.  The  custom  of  building  pyramids  did 
not  end  with  the  Twelfth  Dynasty  ; we  know  of  some 
at  Manfaloot,  at  Hekalli  to  the  south  of  Abydos,  and 
at  Mohammerieh  to  the  south  of  Esneh.  Until  the 
Roman  period,  the  semi-barbarous  sovereigns  of 
Ethiopia  held  it  as  a point  of  honour  to  give  the 
pyramidal  form  to  their  tomb.  The  oldest,  those  of 


Fig.  139- 


Nourri,  where  the  Pharaohs  of  Napata  sleep,  recall  by 
their  style  the  pyramids  of  Sakkarah  ; the  latest,  those 
of  Meroe,  present  fresh  characteristics.  They  are 
higher  than  they  are  wide,  are  built  of  small  blocks, 
and  are  sometimes  decorated  at  the  angles  with 
rounded  borderings.  The  east  face  has  a false  win- 
dow, surmounted  by  a cornice,  and  is  flanked  by  a 
chapel,  which  is  preceded  by  a pylon.  These  pyra- 
mids are  not  all  dumb.  As  in  ordinary  tombs,  the 
walls  contain  scenes  borrowed  from  the  “ Ritual  of 
Burial,”  or  showing  the  vicissitudes  of  the  life  beyond 
the  grave. 


140 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


3. — The  Tombs  of  the  Theban  Empire. 

Excavated  Tombs. 

The  latest  known  mastabas  belong  to  the  Twelfth 
Dynasty.  They  are  grouped  together  in  the  sandy 
plain  of  Meydoom,  and  have  never  been  finished.  Two 
subsequent  systems  replaced  the  mastaba  throughout 

Egypt.  The  first  pre- 
serves the  chapel  con- 
structed above  ground, 
and  combines  the  pyra- 
mid with  the  mastaba  ; 
the  second  excavates 
the  whole  tomb  in  the 
rock  including  the 
chapel. 

The  necropolis  quarter 
of  Abydos,  in  which 
were  interred  the  earlier 
generations  of  the 
Theban  Empire,  furnish 
the  most  ancient  examples  of  the  first  system.  The 
tombs  are  built  of  large,  black,  unbaked  bricks,  made 
without  any  mixture  of  straw  or  grit.  The  lower  part 
is  a mastaba  with  a square  or  oblong  rectangular 
base,  the  longest  side  of  the  latter  being  sometimes  as 
much  as  forty  or  fifty  feet.  The  walls  are  perpendi- 
cular, and  are  seldom  high  enough  for  a man  to  stand 
upright  inside  the  tomb.  On  this  kind  of  pedestal  was 
erected  a pointed  pyramid  of  from  12  to  30  feet  in 
height,  covered  externally  with  a smooth  coat  of  clay 


TOMBS. 


1 4 1 

painted  white.  The  defective  nature  of  the  rock  below 
forbade  the  excavation  of  the  funereal  chamber  ; there 
was  no  resource,  therefore,  except  to  hide  it  in  the 
brickwork.  An  oven-shaped  chamber  with  corbel  vault 
was  constructed  in  the  centre  (fig.  140)  ; but  more 
frequently  the  sepulchral  chamber  is  found  to  be  half 
above  ground  in  the  mastaba  and  half  sunk  in  the 


Fig.  141. 


foundations,  the  vaulted  space  above  being  left  only  to 
relieve  the  weight  (fig.  141).  In  many  cases  there  was 
no  external  chapel,  the  stela,  placed  in  the  basement,  or 
set  in  the  outer  face,  alone  marking  the  place  of  offering. 
In  other  instances  a square  vestibule  was  constructed 
in  front  of  the  tomb  where  the  relations  assembled 
(fig.  142).  Occasionally  a breast-high  enclosure  wall 
surrounded  the  monument,  and  defined  the  boundaries  of 
the  ground  belonging  to  the  tomb.  This  mixed  form  was 


142 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


much  employed  in  Theban  cemeteries  from  the  beginning 
of  the  Middle  Empire.  Many  kings  and  nobles  of  the 
Eleventh  Dynasty  were  buried  at 
Drah-Aboo’l  Neggah,  in  tombs 
like  those  of  Abydos  (fig.  143). 
The  relative  proportion  of  mas- 
taba  and  pyramid  became  modi- 
fied during  the  succeeding  cen- 
turies. The  mastaba — often  a 
mere  insignificant  substructure 
— gradually 
returned  to 
its  original 
height, 
while  the 
pyramid  as  gradually  decreased, 
and  ended  b}'  being  only  an 
unimportant  pyra- 
midion  (fig.  144). 

All  the  monuments 

of  this  type  which  ornamented  the 
Theban  necropolis  during  the  Ramesside 
period  have  perished,  but  contemporary 
tomb-paintings  show  many  varieties, 
and  the  chapel  of  an  Apis  which  died 
during  the  reign  of  Amenhotep  III. 
still  remains  to  show  that  this  fashion 
extended  as  far  as  Memphis.  Of 
the  pyramidion,  scarcely  any  traces 
remain;  but  the  mastaba  is  intact. 
It  is  a square  mass  of  limestone,  raised  on  a base, 
supported  by  four  columns  at  the  corners,  and  sur- 


Fig.  143- 


TWWrilllf//// 


n 


Fig.  144. 


TOMBS. 


143 


mounted  by  an  overhanging  cornice  ; a flight  of  five 
steps  leads  up  to  the  inner  chamber  (fig.  145). 

The  earliest  examples  of  the  second  kind,  namely, 
those  found  at  Gizeh  among  the  mastabas  of  the  Fourth 
Dynasty,  are  neither  large  nor  much  ornamented.  They 
begin  to  be  carefully  wrought  about  the  time  of  the 
Sixth  Dynasty,  and  in  certain  distant  places,  as  Bersheh, 
Sheykh-Said,  Kasr-es-Sayad,  Assouan,  and  Negadeh. 
The  rock-cut  tomb  did  not,  however,  attain  its  full 
development  until  a somewhat  later  period,  i.e.,  during 
the  centuries  which  inter- 
vened between  the  last 
Memphite  kings  and  the 
first  kings  of  the  Theban 
line. 

In  these  rock-cut  tombs 
we  find  all  the  various 
parts  of  the  mastaba.  The 
designer  selected  a promi- 
nent vein  of  limestone, 
high  enough  in  the  cliff  side  to  risk  nothing  from 
the  gradual  rising  of  the  soil,  and  yet  low  enough 
for  the  funeral  procession  to  reach  it  without  diffi- 
culty'-. The  finest  tombs  belong  to  the  great  feudal 
families  of  this  period.  The  lords  of  Minieh  slept 
at  Beni  Hassan  ; those  of  Khmounou  at  Bersheh  ; 
those  of  Siout  and  Elephantine  at  Siout  and  in  the 
cliff  opposite  Assouan  (fig.  146).  Sometimes,  as  at 
Siout,  Bersheh,  and  Thebes,  the  tombs  are  dispersed 
at  various  levels  ; sometimes,  as  at  Beni  Hassan,  they 
follow  the  line  of  the  stratum,  and  are  ranged  in  nearly 
horizontal  terraces.  A flight  of  steps,  rudely  con- 


144 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


structed  in  rough-hewn  stones,  leads  up  from  the  plain 
to  the  entrance  of  the  tomb.  At  Beni  Hassan  and 
Thebes,  these  steps  are  either  destroyed  or  buried  in 
sand  ; but  recent  excavations  have  brought  to  light 
a well-preserved  example  leading  up  to  a tomb  at 
Assouan.* 

The  funeral  procession,  having  slowly  scaled  the  cliff- 
side,  halted  for  a moment  at  the  entrance  to  the  chapel. 
The  plan  was  not  necessarily  uniform  throughout  any 
one  group  of  tombs.  Several  of  the  Beni  Hassan  tombs 


have  porticoes,  the  pillars,  bases,  and  entablatures,  being 
all  cut  in  the  rock  ; those  of  Amoni  and  Khnumhotep 
have  porticoes  supported  on  two  polygonal  columns  (fig. 

* The  steps  are  shown  in  fig.  146.  They  were  discovered  by 
General  Sir  F.  Grenfell  in  1S85.  Noting  the  remains  of  two  parallel 
walls  running  up  from  the  water’s  edge  to  a part  of  the  cliff  which 
had  evidently  been  escarped  and  presented  a vertical  face,  General 
Grenfell  caused  the  sand  to  be  cleared,  thus  disclosing  the  entrances 
to  several  rock-cut  tombs  dating  from  the  Sixth  and  Twelfth  Dynasties, 
as  well  as  two  flights  of  steps  on  either  side  of  an  inclined  plane 
leading  from  the  Nile  bank  to  the  door  of  one  of  the  tombs.  The 
distance  between  the  two  walls  is  ten  feet.  The  steps  are  eighteen 
inches  deep,  and  250  in  number.  The  steps  were  for  the  haulers,  the 
mummies  and  sarcophagi  being  dragged  up  the  inclined  plane. 


TOMBS. 


145 


147).  At  Assouan  (fig.  148),  the  doorway  forms  a high 
and  narrow  recess  cut  in  the  rock  wall,  but  is  divided, 
at  about  one-third  of  its  height,  by  a rectangular  lintel, 
thus  making  a smaller  doorway  in  the  doorway  itself. 
At  Siout,  the  tomb  of  Hapizefa  was  entered  by  a true 
porch  about  twenty-four  feet  in  height,  with  a vaulted 
roof  elegantly  sculptured  and  painted.  More  frequently 


the  side  of  the  mountain  was  merely  cut  away,  and  the 
stone  dressed  over  a more  or  less  extent  of  surface, 
according  to  the  intended  dimensions  of  the  tomb. 
This  method  ensured  the  twofold  advantage  of  clearing 
a little  platform  closed  in  on  three  sides  in  front  of  the 
tomb,  and  also  of  forming  an  upright  facade  which 
could  be  decorated  or  left  plain,  according  to  the  taste 
of  the  proprietor.  The  door,  sunk  in  the  middle  of  this 

IO 


Fig.  147. 


146 


EGYPTIAN  ARCPL-EOLOGY. 


facade,  has  sometimes  no  framework  ; sometimes,  how- 
ever, it  has  two  jambs  and  a lintel,  all  slightly  project- 
ing. The  inscriptions,  when  any  occur,  are  very  simple, 
consisting  of  one  or  two  horizontal  lines  above,  and  one 
or  two  vertical  lines  down  each  side,  with  the  addition 

perhaps  of  a sit- 
ting or  standing 
figure.  These  in- 
scriptions contain 
a prayer,  as  well 
as  the  name,  titles, 
and  parentage  of 
the  deceased.  The 
chapel  generally 
consists  of  a single 
chamber,  either 
square  or  oblong, 
with  a flat  or  a 
slightly  vaulted 
ceiling.  Light  is 
admitted  only 
through  the  door- 
way. Sometimes 
a few  pillars,  left 
Fig.  14S.  standing  in  the 

rock  at  the  time  of 
excavation,  give  this  chamber  the  aspect  of  a little 
hypostyle  hall.  Four  such  pillars  decorate  the  chapels 
of  Amoni  and  Khnumhotep  at  Beni  Hassan.  Other 
chapels  contain  six  or  eight,  and  are  very  irregular  in 
plan.  Tomb  No.  7 was  in  the  first  instance  a simple 
oblong  hall,  with  a barrel  roof  and  six  columns.  Later 


TOMBS. 


147 


on,  it  was  enlarged  on  the  right  side,  the  new  part 
forming  a kind  of  flat-roofed  portico  supported  on  four 
columns  (fig.  150). 

To  form  a serdab  in  the  solid  rock  was  almost  im- 
possible ; while  on 


the  other  hand, 
movable  statues,  if 
left  in  a room  ac- 
cessible to  all  comers, 
would  be  exposed  to 
theft  or  mutilation. 
The  serdab,  there- 
fore, was  trans- 
formed, and  com- 
bined with  the  stela 
of  the  ancient  mas- 
tabas.  The  false  door 
of  the  olden  time  be- 
came a niche  cut  in 
the  end  wall,  almost 
always  facing  the  en- 
trance. Statues  of 
the  deceased  and  his 
wife,  carved  in  the 
solid  rock,  were 
there  enthroned 


(Note  45).  The  walls  were  decorated  with  scenes  of 
offerings,  and  the  entire  decoration  of  the  tomb  con- 
verged towards  the  niche,  as  that  of  the  mastaba 
converged  towards  the  stela.  The  series  of  tableaux 
is,  on  the  whole,  much  the  same  as  of  old,  though 
with  certain  noteworthy  additions.  The  funeral  pro- 


148 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


cession,  and  the  scene  where  the  deceased  enters  into 
possession  of  his  tomb,  both  merely  indicated  in  the 
mastaba,  are  displayed  in  full  upon  the  walls  of  the 
Theban  sepulchre.  The  mournful  cortege  is  there,  with 
the  hired  mourners,  the  troops  of  friends,  the  bearers 
of  offerings,  the  boats  for  crossing  the  river,  and  the 
catafalque  drawn  by  oxen.  It  arrives  at  the  door  of 
the  tomb.  The  mummy,  placed  upright  upon  his 


are  absent  from  tombs  of  the  earlier  dynasties  are 
here  represented,  while  others  which  are  invariably 
met  with  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  pyramids  are 
lacking.  Twenty  centuries  work  many  changes  in  the 
usages  of  daily  life,  even  in  conservative  Egypt.  We 
look  almost  in  vain  for  herds  of  gazelles  upon  the 
walls  of  the  Theban  tombs,  for  the  reason  that  these 
animals,  in  Ramesside  times,  had  ceased  to  be  bred 
in  a state  of  domestication.  The  horse,  on  the  other 
hand,  had  been  imported  into  the  valley  of  the  Nile, 


Fig.  150. 


feet,  receives  the  farewell  of 
his  family ; and  the  last 
ceremonies,  which  are  to 
initiate  him  into  the  life  be- 
yond the  grave,  are  duly 
performed  (fig.  1 5 1 ).  The 
sacrifices,  with  all  the  pre- 
liminary processes,  as  tillage, 
seed  - growing,  harvesting, 
stock  - breeding,  and  the 
practice  of  various  kinds  of 
handicraft,  are  either  sculp- 
tured or  painted,  as  before. 
Many  details,  however,  which 


TOMBS. 


I49 


and  is  depicted  pawing  the  ground  where  formerly 
the  gazelle  was  seen  cropping  the  pasturage.  The 
trades  are  also  more  numerous  and  complicated  ; the 
workmen’s  tools  are  more  elaborate ; the  actions  of 
the  deceased  are  more  varied  and  personal.  In  former 
times,  when  first  the  rules  of  tomb  decoration  were 


formulated,  the  notion  of  future  retribution  either  did 
not  exist,  or  was  but  dimly  conceived.  The  deeds 
which  he  had  done  here  on  earth  in  no  wise  in- 
fluenced the  fate  which  awaited  the  man  after  death. 
Whether  good  or  bad,  from  the  moment  when  the 
funeral  rites  were  performed  and  the  necessary 
prayers  recited,  he  was  rich  and  happy.  In  order  to 
establish  his  identity,  it  was  enough  to  record  his  name, 


150 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/E0L0GY. 


his  title,  and  his  parentage ; his  past  was  taken  for 
granted.  But  when  once  a belief  in  rewards  and 
punishments  to  come  had  taken  possession  of  men’s 
minds,  they  bethought  them  of  the  advisability  of 
giving  to  each  deceased  the  benefit  of  his  individual 
merits.  To  the  official  register  of  his  social  status,  they 
now  therefore  added  a brief  biographical  notice.  At 
first,  this  consisted  of  only  a few  words  ; but  towards  the 
time  of  the  Sixth  Dynasty  (as  where  Una  recounts 
his  public  services  under  four  kings),  these  few  words 
developed  into  pages  of  contemporary  history.  With 
the  beginning  of  the  New  Empire,  tableaux  and  in- 
scriptions combine  to  immortalise  the  deeds  of  the 
owner  of  the  tomb.  Khnumhotep  of  Beni-Hassan  records 
in  full  the  origin  and  greatness  of  his  ancestors. 
Khiti  displays  upon  his  walls  all  the  incidents  of  a 
military  life — parades,  war-dances,  sieges,  and  sangui- 
nary battle  scenes.  In  this  respect,  as  in  all  others, 
the  Eighteenth  Dynasty  perpetuates  the  tradition  of 
preceding  ages.  A'i,  in  his  fine  tomb  at  Tell-el- 
Amarna,  recounts  the  episode  of  his  marriage  with  the 
daughter  of  Khoo-en-Aten.  Neferhotep  of  Thebes, 
having  received  from  Horemheb  the  decoration  of  the 
Golden  Collar,  complacently  reproduces  every  little 
incident  of  his  investiture,  the  words  spoken  by  the 
king,  as  also  the  year  and  the  day  when  this  crowning 
reward  was  conferred  upon  him.  Another,  having  con- 
ducted a survey,  is  seen  attended  by  his  subordinates 
with  their  measuring  chains  ; elsewhere  he  superin- 
tends a census  of  the  population,  just  as  Ti  formerly 
superintended  the  numbering  of  his  cattle.  The 
stela  partakes  of  these  new  characteristics  in  wall- 


TOMBS. 


1 5 i 

decoration.  In  addition  to  the  usual  prayers,  it  now 
proclaims  the  praises  of  the  deceased,  and  gives  a 
summary  of  his  life.  This  is  too  seldom  followed  by  a 
list  of  his  honours  with  their  dates. 

When  space  permitted,  the  vault  was  excavated  im- 
mediately below  the  chapel.  The  shaft  was  sometimes 
sunk  in  a corner  of  one  of  the  chambers,  and  some- 
times outside,  in  front  of  the  door  of  the  tomb.  In 
the  great  cemeteries,  as  for  instance  at  Thebes  and 
Memphis,  the  superposition  of  these  three  parts — 
the  chapel,  the  shaft,  and  the  vault — was  not  always 
possible.  If  the  shaft  were  carried  to  its  accustomed 
depth,  there  was  sometimes  the  risk  of  breaking  into 
tombs  excavated  at  a lower  level.  This  danger  was 
met  either  by  driving  a long  passage  into  the  rock,  and 
then  sinking  the  shaft  at  the  farther  end,  or  by  sub- 
stituting a slightly  sloping  or  horizontal  disposition  of 
the  parts  for  the  old  vertical  arrangement  of  the 
mastaba  model.  The  passage  in  this  case  opens  from 
the  centre  of  the  end  wall,  its  average  length  being 
from  20  to  130  feet.  The  sepulchral  vault  is  always 
small  and  plain,  as  well  as  the  passage.  Under  the 
Theban  dynasties,  as  under  the  Memphite  kings,  the 
Soul  dispensed  with  decorations ; but  when  once 
it  was  decided  to  decorate  the  walls,  the  figures 
and  inscriptions  are  found  to  relate  chiefly  to  the  life 
of  the  Soul,  and  very  slightly  to  the  life  of  the 
Double.  In  the  tomb  of  Horhotep,  which  is  of  the 
time  of  the  Usertesens,  and  in  similar  rock-cut  sepul- 
chres, the  walls  (except  on  the  side  of  the  door) 
are  divided  into  two  registers.  The  upper  row  be- 
longs to  the  Double,  and  contains,  besides  the  table 


152  ■ EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 

of  offerings,  pictured  representations  of  the  same 
objects  which  are  seen  in  certain  mastabas  of  the 
Sixth  Dynasty  ; namely,  stuffs,  jewels,  arms,  and  per- 
fumes, all  needful  to  Horhotep  for  the  purpose  of 
imparting  eternal  youth  to  his  limbs.  The  lower 
register  belonged  to  both  the  Soul  and  the  Double, 
and  is  inscribed  with  extracts  from  a variety  of  litur- 
gical writings,  such  as  The  Book  of  the  Dead , the 
Ritual  of  Embalmment , and  the  Funeral  Ritual,  all 
of  which  were  possessed  of  magic  properties  which 
protected  the  Soul  and  supported  the  Double.  The 
stone  sarcophagus,  and  even  the  coffin,  are  also  covered 
with  closely-written  inscriptions.  Precisely  as  the 
stela  epitomised  the  whole  chapel,  so  did  the  sarco- 
phagus and  coffin  epitomise  the  sepulchral  chamber, 
thus  forming,  as  it  were,  a vault  within  a vault. 
Texts,  tableaux,  all  thereon  depicted,  treat  of  the  life 
of  the  Soul,  and  of  its  salvation  in  the  world  to  come. 

At  Thebes,  as  at  Memphis,  the  royal  tombs  are  those 
which  it  is  most  necessary  to  study,  in  order  to  estimate 
the  high  degree  of  perfection  to  which  the  decoration 
of  passages  and  sepulchral  chambers  was  now  carried. 
The  most  ancient  were  situate  either  in  the  plain  or 
on  the  southern  slopes  of  the  western  mountain  ; and 
of  these,  no  remains  are  extant.  The  mummies  of 
Amenhotep  I.,  of  Thothmes  III.,  of  Sekenen-Ra,  and 
Aahhotep  have  survived  the  dwellings  of  solid  stone 
designed  for  their  protection.  Towards  the  middle  of  the 
Eighteenth  Dynasty,  however,  all  the  best  places  were 
taken  up,  and  some  unoccupied  site  in  which  to  esta- 
blish a new  royal  cemetery  had  to  be  sought.  At  first 
they  went  to  a considerable  distance  ; namely,  to  the  end 


TOMBS. 


153 


of  the  valley  (known  as  the  Western  Valley),  which  opens 
from  near  Drah-Aboo-l-Neggah.  Amenhotep  III.,  A'i, 
and  perhaps  others,  were  there  buried.  Somewhat  later, 
they  preferred  to  draw  nearer  to  the  city  of  the  living. 
Behind  the  cliff  which  forms  the  northern  boundary  of 
the  plain  of  Thebes,  there  lay  a kind  of  rocky  basin 
closed  in  on  every  side,  and  accessible  from  the  outer 
world  by  only  a few  perilous  paths.  It  divides  into  two 
branches,  which  cross  almost  at  right  angles.  One 
branch  turns  to  the  south-east,  while  the  other,  which 
again  divides  into  secondary  branches,  turns  to  the 
south-west.  Westward  rises  a mountain  which  recalls 
upon  a gigantic  scale  the  outline  of  the  great  step- 
pyramid  of  Sakkarah.*  The  Egyptian  engineers  of  the 
time  observed  that  this  basin  was  separated  from  the 
ravine  of  Amenhotep  III.  by  a mere  barrier  some  500 
cubits  in  thickness.  In  this  there  was  nothing  to 
dismay  such  practised  miners.  They  therefore  cut  a 
trench  some  fifty  or  sixty  cubits  deep  through  the  solid 
rock,  at  the  end  of  which  a narrow  passage  opens  like 
a gateway  into  the  hidden  valley  beyond.  Was  it  in 
the  time  of  Horemheb,  or  during  the  reign  of  Rameses  I., 
that  this  gigantic  work  was  accomplished  ? Rameses  I. 
is,  at  all  events,  the  earliest  king  whose  tomb  has  as 
yet  been  found  in  this  spot.  His  son,  Seti  I.,  then  his 
grandson,  Rameses  II.,  came  hither  to  rest  beside  him. 
The  Ramesside  Pharaohs  followed  one  after  the  other. 
Her-Hor  may  perhaps  have  been  the  last  of  the  series. 
These  crowded  catacombs  caused  the  place  to  be  called 
“The  ATalley  of  the  Tombs  of  the  Kings,” — a name 
which  it  retains  to  this  day. 


* See  fig.  133. 


154 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY.  . 


These  tombs  are  not  complete.  Each  had  its  chapel ; 
but  those  chapels  stood  far  away  in  the  plain,  at  Goornah, 
at  the  Ramesseum,  at  Medinet-Haboo  ; and  they  have 
already  been  described.  The  Theban  rock,  like  the 
Memphite  pyramid,  contained  only  the  passages  and 
the  sepulchral  chamber.  During  the  daytime,  the  pure 
Soul  was  in  no  serious  danger  ; but  in  the  evening, 
when  the  eternal  waters  which  flow  along  the  vaulted 
heavens  fall  in  vast  cascades  adown  the  west  and  are 
engulfed  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  the  Soul  follows 
the  bark  of  the  Sun  and  its  escort  of  luminary  gods 
into  a lower  world  bristling  with  ambuscades  and  perils. 
For  twelve  hours,  the  divine  squadron  defiles  through 
long  and  gloomy  corridors,  where  numerous  genii,  some 
hostile,  some  friendly,  now  struggle  to  bar  the  way,  and 
now  aid  it  in  surmounting  the  difficulties  of  the  journey. 
Great  doors,  each  guarded  by  a gigantic  serpent,  were 
stationed  at  intervals,  and  led  to  an  immense  hall  full 
of  flame  and  fire,  peopled  by  hideous  monsters  and 
executioners  whose  office  it  was  to  torture  the  damned. 
Then  came  more  dark  and  narrow  passages,  more  blind 
gropings  in  the  gloom,  more  strife  with  malevolent  genii, 
and  again  the  joyful  welcoming  of  the  propitious  gods. 
At  midnight  began  the  upward  journey  towards  the 
eastern  regions  of  the  world  ; and  in  the  morning,  having 
reached  the  confines  of  the  Land  of  Darkness,  the  sun 
emerged  from  the  east  to  light  another  day.  The  tombs 
of  the  kings  were  constructed  upon  the  model  of  the 
world  of  night.  They  had  their  passages,  their  doors, 
their  vaulted  halls,  which  plunged  down  into  the  depths 
of  the  mountain.  Their  position  in  the  valley  was  de- 
termined by  no  consideration  of  dynasty  or  succession. 


TOMBS. 


155 


Each  king  attacked  the  rock  at  any  point  where  he 
might  hope  to  find  a .suitable  bed  of  stone  ; and  this 
was  done  with  so  little  regard  for  his  predecessors,  that 
the  workmen  were  sometimes  obliged  to  change  the 
direction  of  the  excavation  in  order  not  to  invade  a 
neighbouring  catacomb.  The  designer's  plan  was  a 

ET 

i- 

Fig.  152. 

mere  sketch,  to  be  modified  when  necessary,  and  which 
was  by  no  means  intended  to  be  strictly  carried  out. 
Hence  the  plan  and  measurement  of  the  actual  tomb  of 
Rameses  IV.  (fig.  152)  differ  in  the  outline  of  the  sides 
and  in  the  general  arrangement  from  the  plan  of  that 
same  tomb  which  is  preserved  on  a papyrus  in  the  Turin 


Fig.  153- 


Museum  (fig.  153).  Nothing,  however,  could  be  more 
simple  than  the  ordinary  distribution  of  the  parts.  A 
square  door,  very  sparingly  ornamented,  opened  upon 
a passage  leading  to  a chamber  of  more  or  less  extent. 
From  the  further  end  of  this  chamber  opened  a second 
passage  leading  to  a second  chamber,  and  thence  some- 
times to  more  chambers,  the  last  of  which  contained  the 
sarcophagus.  In  some  tombs,  the  whole  excavation  is 


156 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


carried  down  a gently  inclined  plane,  broken  perhaps 
by  only  one  or  two  low  steps  between  the  entrance  and 
the  end.  In  others,  the  various  parts  follow  each  other 
at  lower  and  lower  levels.  In  the  catacomb  of  Seti  I., 
(fig.  154)  a long  and  narrow  flight  of  stairs  and  a 
sloping  corridor  (a)  lead  to  a little  antechamber  and 
two  halls  (b)  supported  on  pillars.  A second  staircase 
(c)  leads  through  a second  antechamber  to  another 
pillared  hall  (d),  which  was  the  hiding-place  of  the 
sarcophagus.  The  tomb  did  not  end  here.  A third 
staircase  (f.)  opening  from  the  end  of  the  principal  hall 


was  in  progress,  and  would  no  doubt  have  led  to  more 
halls  and  chambers,  had  not  the  work  been  stopped  by 
the  death  of  the  king.*  If  we  go  from  catacomb  to 
catacomb,  we  do  not  find  many  variations  upon  this 
plan.  The  entrance  passage  in  the  tomb  of  Rameses  III. 
is  flanked  by  eight  small  lateral  chambers.  In  almost 
every  other  instance,  the  lesser  or  greater  length  of  the 
passages,  and  the  degree  of  finish  given  to  the  wall 
paintings,  constitute  the  only  differences  between  one 
tomb  and  another.  The  smallest  of  these  catacombs 

* M.  Lefebure  has  lately  produced  a superb  and  elaborate  volume 
on  this  tomb,  with  the  whole  of  the  texts  and  the  wall  decorations, 
faithfully  reproduced  : Annales  du  Muse'e  Gnimet,  Tome  ix.  [Trans- 
lator's note.] 


TOMBS. 


157 


comes  to  an  end  at  fifty-three  feet  from  the  entrance  ; 
that  of  Seti  I.,  which  is  the  longest,  descends  to  a 
distance  of  470  feet,  and  there  remains  unfinished. 
The  same  devices  to  which  the  pyramid  builders  had 
recourse,  in  order  to  mislead  the  spoiler,  were  adopted 
by  the  engineers  of  the  Theban  catacombs.  False 
shafts  were  sunk  which  led  to  nothing,  and  walls 
sculptured  and  painted  were  built  across  the  passages. 
When  the  burial  was  over,  the  entrance  was  filled  up 
with  blocks  of  rock,  and  the  natural  slope  of  the  moun- 
tain side  was  restored  as  skilfully  as  might  be. 

The  most  complete  type  of  this  class  of  catacomb 
is  that  left  to  us  by  Seti  I.  ; figures  and  hieroglyphs 
alike  are  models  of  pure  design  and  elegant  execution. 
The  tomb  of  Rameses  III.  already  points  to  decadence. 
It  is  for  the  most  part  roughly  painted.  Yellow  is 
freely  laid  on,  and  the  raw  tones  of  the  reds  and  blues 
are  suggestive  of  the  early  daubs  of  our  childhood. 
Mediocrity  ere  long  reigned  supreme,  the  outlines 
becoming  more  feeble,  the  colour  more  and  more 
glaring,  till  the  latest  tombs  are  but  caricatures  of 
those  of  Seti  I.  and  Rameses  III.  The  decoration  is 
always  the  same,  and  is  based  on  the  same  principles 
as  the  decoration  of  the  pyramids.  At  Thebes  as  at 
Memphis,  the  intention  was  to  secure  to  the  Double 
the  free  enjoyment  of  his  new  abode,  and  to  usher 
the  Soul  into  the  company  of  the  gods  of  the  solar 
cycle  and  the  Osirian  cycle,  as  well  as  to  guide  it 
through  the  labyrinth  of  the  infernal  regions.  But  the 
Theban  priests  exercised  their  ingenuity  to  bring  before 
the  eyes  of  the  deceased  all  that  which  the  Memphites 
consigned  to  his  memory  by  means  of  writing,  thus 


158  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

enabling  him  to  see  what  he  had  formerly  been  obliged 
to  read  upon  the  walls  of  his  tomb.  Where  the  texts 
of  the  pyramid  of  Unas  relate  how  Unas,  being 
identified  with  the  sun,  navigates  the  celestial  waters 
or  enters  the  Elysian  Fields,  the  pictured  walls  of  the 
tomb  of  Seti  I.  show  Seti  sailing  in  .the  solar  bark, 
while  a side  chamber  in  the  tomb  of  Rameses  III. 
shows  Rameses  III.  in  the  Elysian  Fields  (fig.  155). 
Where  the  walls  of  the  pyramid  of  Unas  give  the 
prayers  recited  over  the  mummy  to  open  his  mouth, 


to  restore  the  use  of  his  limbs,  to  clothe,  to  perfume, 
to  feed  him,  the  walls  of  Seti’s  catacomb  contain 
representations  of  the  actual  mummy,  of  the  Ka 
statues  which  are  the  supports  of  his  Double,  and  of 
the  priests  who  open  their  mouths,  who  clothe  them, 
perfume  them,  and  offer  them  the  various  meats  and 
drinks  of  the  funeral  feast.  The  ceilings  of  the 
pyramid  chambers  were  sprinkled  over  with  stars  to 
resemble  the  face  of  the  heavens ; but  there  was 
nothing  to  instruct  the  Soul  as  to  the  names  of  those 
heavenly  bodies.  On  the  ceilings  of  some  of  the 
Theban  catacombs,  we  not  only  find  the  constellations 


TOMBS. 


159 


depicted,  each  with  its  personified  image,  but  astrono- 
mical tables  giving  the  aspect  of  the  heavens  fortnight 
by  fortnight  throughout  the  months  of  the  Egyptian 
year,  so  that  the  Soul  had  but  to  lift  its  eyes  and 
see  in  what  part  of  the  firmament  its  course  lay  night 
after  night.  Taken  as  a series,  these  tableaux  form 
an  illustrated  narrative  of  the  travels  of  the  sun  and 
the  Soul  throughout  the  twenty-four  hours  of  the  day 
and  night.  Each  hour  is  represented,  as  also  the  domain 
of  each  hour  with  its  circumscribed  boundary,  the 
door  of  which  is  guarded  by  a huge  serpent.  These 
serpents  have  their  various  names,  as  “ Fire-Face,” 
“ Flaming  Eye,”  “ Evil  Eye,”  etc.  The  fate  of  Souls 
was  decided  in  the  third  hour  of  the  day.  They  were 
weighed  by  the  god  Thoth,  who  consigned  them  to 
their  future  abode  according  to  the  verdict  of  the 
scales.  The  sinful  Soul  was  handed  over  to  the 
cynocephalous  ape-assessors  of  the  infernal  tribunal, 
who  hunted  and  scourged  it,  after  first  changing  it 
into  a sow,  or  some  other  impure  animal.  The  inno- 
cent Soul,  on  the  contrary,  passed  in  the  fifth  hour 
into  the  company  of  his  fellows,  whose  task  it  was  to 
cultivate  the  Elysian  Fields  and  reap  the  corn  of  the 
celestial  harvest,  after  which  they  took  their  pleasure 
under  the  guardianship  of  the  good  genii.  After  the 
fifth  hour,  the  heavenly  ocean  became  a vast  battle- 
field. The  gods  of  light  pursued,  captured,  and 
bound  the  serpent  Apapi,  and  at  the  twelfth  hour  they 
strangled  him.  But  this  triumph  was  not  of  long 
duration.  Scarcely  had  the  sun  achieved  this  victory 
when  his  bark  was  borne  by  the  tide  into  the  realm  of 
the  night  hours,  and  from  that  moment  he  was  assailed 


i6o 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


like  Virgil  and  Dante  at  the  Gates  of  Hell,  by  frightful 
sounds  and  clamourings.  Each  circle  had  its  voice, 
not  to  be  confounded  with  the  voices  of  other  circles. 
Here  the  sound  was  as  an  immense  humming  of  wasps  ; 
yonder  it  was  as  the  lamentations  of  women  for  their 
husbands,  and  the  howling  of  she-beasts  for  their 
mates  ; elsewhere  it  was  as  the  rolling  of  the  thunder. 
The  sarcophagus,  as  well  as  the  walls,  was  covered 
with  these  scenes  of  joyous  or  sinister  import.  It 
was  generally  of  red  or  black  granite,  and  so  large  that 
it  could  not  have  been  brought  into  the  valley  by  way 
of  the  “ Gate  of  the  Kings.”*  It  must  have  been 
laboriously  hoisted  to  the  summit  of  the  cliff  of  Dayr- 
el-Baharee,  and  thence  lowered  to  its  destination.  As 
it  was  put  in  hand  last  of  all,  it  frequently  happened 
that  the  sculptors  had  not  time  to  finish  it.  When 
finished,  however,  the  scenes  and  texts  with  which  it 
was  covered  contained  an  epitome  of  the  whole  cata- 
comb. Thus,  lying  in  his  sarcophagus,  the  dead  man 
found  his  future  destinies  depicted  thereon,  and  learned 
to  understand  the  blessedness  of  the  gods.  The 
tombs  of  private  persons  were  not  often  so  elaborately 
decorated.  Two  tombs  of  the  period  of  the  Twenty- 
sixth  Dynasty — that  of  Petamunoph  at  Thebes  and 
that  of  Bakenrenf  at  Memphis — compete  in  this 
respect,  however,  with  the  royal  catacombs.  Their 
walls  are  not  only  sculptured  with  the  text  (more  or 
less  complete)  of  The  Book  of  the  Dead,  but  also 
with  long  extracts  from  The  Book  of  the  Opening  of 

* The  narrow  cutting  in  the  rock  described  in  p.  153  is  called 
by  the  Arabs  “ Bab-el-Molook  ” — literally,  “The  Gate  of  the  King.” 
[Translator's  note.] 


TOMBS. 


1 6 1 


the  Mouth  and  the  religious  formulae  found  in  the 
pyramids. 

As  every  part  of  the  tomb  had  its  special  decoration, 
so  also  it  had  its  special  furniture.  Of  the  chapel 
furniture  few  traces  have  been  preserved.  The  table 
of  offerings,  which  was  of  stone,  is  generally  all  that 
remains.  The  objects  placed  in  the  serdab,  in  the 
passages,  and  in  the  sepulchral  chamber,  have  suffered 
less  from  the  ravages  of  time  and  the  hand  of  man. 
During  the  Ancient  Empire,  the  funerary  portrait 
statues  were  always  immured  in  the  serdab.  The 
sepulchral  vault  contained,  besides  the  sarcophagus, 
head-rests  of  limestone  or  alabaster  ; geese  carved  in 
stone ; sometimes  (though  rarely)  a scribe’s  palette  ; 
generally  some  terra-cotta  vases  of  various  shapes  ; 
and  lastly  a store  of  food-cereals,  and  the  bones  of  the 
victims  sacrificed  on  the  day  of  burial.  Under  the 
Theban  Dynasties,  the  household  goods  of  the  dead 
were  richer  and  more  numerous.  The  Ka  statues  of 
his  servants  and  family,  which  in  former  times  were 
placed  in  the  serdab  with  those  of  the  'master,  were 
now  consigned  to  the  vault,  and  made  on  a smaller 
scale.  On  the  other  hand,  many  objects  which  used  to 
be  merely  depicted  on  the  walls  were  now  represented 
by  models,  or  by  actual  specimens.  Thus  we  find 
miniature  funerary  boats,  with  crew,  mummy,  mourners, 
and  friends  complete;  imitation  bread-offerings  of  baked 
clay,  erroneously  called  “ funerary  cones,”  stamped 
with  the  name  of  the  deceased  ; bunches  of  grapes  in 
glazed  ware ; and  limestone  moulds  wherewith  the 
deceased  was  supposed  to  make  pottery  models  of  oxen, 
birds,  and  fish,  which  should  answer  the  purpose  of 


162 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


fish,  flesh,  and  fowl.  Toilet  and  kitchen  utensils,  arms, 
and  instruments  of  music  abound.  These  are  mostly 
broken — piously  slain,  in  order  that  their  souls  should 
go  hence  to  wait  upon  the  soul  of  the  dead  man  in 
the  next  world.  Little  statuettes  in  stone,  wood,  and 
enamel — blue,  green,  and  white — are  scattered  by 
hundreds,  and  even  by  thousands,  amid  these  piles 
of  furniture,  arms,  and  provisions.  Properly  speaking, 
they  are  reduced  s^rr/rt^-statues,  destined,  like  their 
larger  predecessors,  to  serve  as  bodies  for  the  Double, 
and  (by  a later  conception)  for  the  Soul.  They  were  at 
first  represented  clothed  like  the  individual  whose  name 
they  bore.  As  time  went  on,  their  importance  dwindled, 
and  their  duties  were  limited  to  merely  answering  for 
their  master  when  called,  and  acting  as  his  substitutes 
when  he  was  summoned  by  the  gods  to  perform  his 
share  of  work  in  the  Elysian  Fields.  Thenceforth 
they  were  called  “Respondents”  (“ Ushabti ”),  and 
were  represented  with  agricultural  implements  in  their 
hands.  No  longer  clothed  as  the  man  was  clothed 
when  living,  they  were  made  in  the  semblance  of  a 
mummified  corpse,  with  only  the  face  and  hands 
unbandaged.  The  so-called  “ canopic  vases,”  with 
lids  fashioned  like  heads  of  hawks,  cynocephali,  jackals, 
and  men,  were  reserved  from  the  time  of  the  Eleventh 
Dynasty  for  the  viscerae,  which  were  extracted  from 
the  body  by  the  embalmers.  As  for  the  mummy,  it 
continued,  as  time  went  on,  to  be  more  and  more 
enwrapped  in  “ cartonnages,”  and  more  liberally  pro- 
vided with  papyri  and  amulets  ; each  amulet  forming 
an  essential  part  of  its  magical  armour,  and  serving  to 
protect  its  limbs  and  soul  from  destruction. 


TOMBS. 


163 


Theoretically,  every  Egyptian  was  entitled  to  an 
eternal  dwelling  constructed  after  the  plan  which  I 
have  here  described  with  its  successive  modifications  ; 
but  the  poorer  folk  were  fain  to  do  without  those  things 
which  were  the  necessities  of  the  wealthier  dead.  They 
were  buried  wherever  it  was  cheapest — in  old  tombs 
which  had  been  ransacked  and  abandoned ; in  the 
natural  clefts  of  the  rock  ; or  in  common  pits.  At 
Thebes,  in  the  time  of  the  Ramessides,  great  trenches 
dug  in  the  sand  awaited  their  remains.  The  funeral 
rites  once  performed,  the  grave-diggers  cast  a thin 
covering  of  sand  over  the  day’s  mummies,  sometimes 
in  lots  of  two  or  three,  and  sometimes  in  piles  which 
they  did  not  even  take  the  trouble  to  lay  in  regular 
layers.  Some  were  protected  only  by  their  bandages  ; 
others  were  wrapped  about  with  palm-branches,  lashed 
in  the  fashion  of  a game-basket.  Those  most  cared 
for  lie  in  boxes  of  rough-hewn  wood,  neither  painted 
nor  inscribed.  Many  are  huddled  into  old  coffins  which 
have  not  even  been  altered  to  suit  the  size  of  the  new 
occupant,  or  into  a composite  contrivance  made  of  the 
fragments  of  three  or  four  broken  mummy-cases.  As 
to  funerary  furniture,  it  was  out  of  the  question  for 
such  poor  souls  as  these.  A pair  of  sandals  of  painted 
cardboard  or  plaited  reeds ; a staff  for  walking  along 
the  heavenly  highways  ; a ring  of  enamelled  ware ; a 
bracelet  or  necklace  of  little  blue  beads  ; a tiny  image  of 
Ptah,  of  Osiris,  of  Anubis,  of  Hathor,  or  of  Bast ; a few 
mystic  eyes  or  scarabs  ; and,  above  all,  a twist  or  two 
of  cord  round  the  arm,  the  neck,  the  leg,  or  the  body, 
intended  to  preserve  the  corpse  from  magical  influences, 
— are  the  only  possessions  of  the  pauper  dead. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 

The  statues  and  bas-reliefs  which  decorated  the  temples 
and  tombs  of  Ancient  Egypt  were  for  the  most  part 
painted.  Coloured  stones,  such  as  granite,  basalt, 
diorite,  serpentine,  and  alabaster,  sometimes  escaped 
this  law  of  polychrome ; but  in  the  case  of  sandstone, 
limestone,  or  wood  it  was  rigorously  enforced.  If 
sometimes  we  meet  with  uncoloured  monuments  in 
these  materials,  we  may  be  sure  that  the  paint  has 
been  accidentally  rubbed  off,  or  that  the  work  is  un- 
finished. The  sculptor  and  the  painter  were  therefore 
inseparably  allied.  The  first  had  no  sooner  finished 
his  share  of  the  task  than  the  other  took  it  up ; and 
the  same  artist  was  often  as  skilful  a master  of  the 
brush  as  of  the  chisel. 

§ I.  DRAWING  AND  COMPOSITION. 

Of  the  system  upon  which  drawing  was  taught  by 
the  Egyptian  masters,  we  know  nothing.  They  had 
learned  from  experience  to  determine  the  general  pro- 
portions of  the  body,  and  the  invariable  relations  of 
the  various  parts  one  with  another  ; but  they  never 
troubled  themselves  to  tabulate  those  proportions,  or 
to  reduce  them  to  a system.  Nothing  in  what  remains 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  1 65 

to  us  of  their  works  justifies  the  belief  that  they  ever 
possessed  a canon  based  upon  the  length  of  the  human 
finger  or  foot.  Theirs  was  a teaching  of  routine,  and 
not  of  theory.  Models  executed  by  the  master  were 
copied  over  and  over  again  by  his  pupils,  till  they 
could  reproduce  them  with  absolute  exactness.  That 
they  also  studied  from  the  life  is  shown  by  the  facility 
with  which  they  seized  a likeness,  or  rendered  the 
characteristics  and  movements  of  different  kinds  of 
animals.  They  made  their  first  attempts  upon  slabs 
of  limestone,  on  drawing  boards  covered  with  a coat  of 
red  or  white  stucco,  or  on  the  back  of  old  manuscripts 
of  no  value.  New  papyrus  was  too  dear  to  be  spoiled 
by  the  scrawls  of  tyros.  Having 
neither  pencil  nor  stylus,  they 
made  use  of  the  reed,  the  end 
of  which,  when  steeped  in  water, 
opened  out  into  small  fibres, 
and  made  a more  or  less  fine  brush  according  to  the 
size  of  the  stem.  The  palette  was  of  thin  wood,  in 
shape  a rectangular  oblong,  with  a groove  in  which  to 
lay  the  brush  at  the  lower  end.  At  the  upper  end 
were  two  or  more  cup-like  hollows,  each  fitted  with 
a cake  of  ink  ; black  and  red  being  the  colours  most  in 
use.  A tiny  pestle  and  mortar  for  colour-grinding 
(fig.  156),  and  a cup  of  water  in  which  to  dip  and  wash 
the  brush,  completed  the  apparatus  of  the  student. 
Palette  in  hand,  he  squatted  cross-legged  before  his 
copy,  and,  without  any  kind  of  support  for  his  wrist, 
endeavoured  to  reproduce  the  outline  in  black.  The 
master  looked  over  his  work  when  done,  and  corrected 
the  errors  in  red  ink. 


I 66  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

The  few  designs  which  have  come  down  to  us  are 
drawn  on  pieces  of  limestone,  and  are  for  the  most  part 
in  sufficiently  bad  preservation.  The  British  Museum 
possesses  two  or  three  subjects  in  red  outline,  which 
may  perhaps  have  been  used  as  copies  by  the  decora- 
tors of  some  Theban  tomb  about  the  time  of  the 
Twentieth  Dynasty.  A fragment  in  the  Museum  of 
Boulak  contains  studies  of  ducks  or  geese  in  black  ink  ; 
and  at  Turin  may  be  seen  a sketch  of  a half-nude  female 
figure  bending  backwards,  as  about  to  turn  a somersault. 
The  lines  are  flowing,  the  movement  is  graceful,  the 
modelling  delicate.  The  draughtsman  was  not  ham- 
pered then  as  now,  by  the  rigidity  of  the  instrument 
between  his  fingers.  The  reed  brush  attacked  the 
surface  perpendicularly;  broadened,  diminished,  or  pro- 
longed the  line  at  will ; and  stopped  or  turned  with  the 
utmost  readiness.  So  supple  a medium  was  admirably 
adapted  to  the  rapid  rendering  of  the  humorous  or 
ludicrous  episodes  of  daily  life.  The  Egyptians, 
naturally  laughter-loving  and  satirical,  were  carica- 
turists from  an  early  period.  One  of  the  Turin  papyri 
chronicles  the  courtship  of  a shaven  priest  and  a 
songstress  of  Amen  in  a series  of  spirited  vignettes, 
while  on  the  back  of  the  same  sheet  are  sketched 
various  serio-comic  scenes,  in  which  animals  parody 
the  pursuits  of  civilised  man.  An  ass,  a lion,  a 
crocodile,  and  an  ape  are  represented  in  the  act  of 
giving  a vocal  and  instrumental  concert ; a lion  and 
a gazelle  play  at  draughts ; the  Pharaoh  of  all  the  rats, 
in  a chariot  drawn  by  dogs,  gallops  to  the  assault  of 
a fortress  garrisoned  by  cats  ; a cat  of  fashion,  with 
a flower  on  her  head,  has  come  to  blows  with  a goose, 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


167 


and  the  hapless  fowl,  powerless  in  so  unequal  a contest, 
topples  over  with  terror.  Cats,  by  the  way,  were 
the  favourite  animals  of  Egyptian  caricaturists.  An 
ostrakon  in  the  New  York  Museum  depicts  a cat  of 
rank  en  grande  toilette,  seated  in  an  easy  chair,  and 
a miserable  Tom,  with  piteous  mien  and  tail  between 
his  legs,  serving  her  with  refreshments  (fig.  157).  Our 
catalogue  of  comic  sketches  is  brief ; but  the  abundance 
of  pen-drawings  with  which  certain  religious  works 
were  illustrated  compensates  for  our  poverty  in  secular 
subjects.  These 
works  are  “ The  Book 
of  the  Dead  ” and 
“The  Book  of  Know- 
ing That  which  is  in 
Hell,"  which  were 
reproduced  by  hun- 
dreds, according  to 
standard  copies  pre- 
served in  the  tem- 
ples, or  handed  down  through  families  whose  hereditary 
profession  it  was  to  conduct  the  services  for  the  dead. 
When  making  these  illustrations,  the  artist  had  no  oc- 
casion to  draw  upon  his  imagination.  He  had  but  to 
imitate  the  copy  as  skilfully  as  he  could.  Of  “The  Book 
of  Knowing  That  which  is  in  Hell  ” we  have  no  examples 
earlier  than  the  time  of  the  Twentieth  Dynast}',  and 
these  are  poor  enough  in  point  of  workmanship,  the 
figures  being  little  better  than  dot-and-line  forms, 
badly  proportioned  and  hastily  scrawled.  The  extant 
specimens  of  “The  Book  of  the  Dead ” are  so  numerous 
that  a history  of  the  art  of  miniature  painting  in 


1 68 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


ancient  Egypt  might  be  compiled  from  this  source 
alone.  The  earliest  date  from  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty, 
the  more  recent  being  contemporary  with  the  first 
Caesars.  The  oldest  copies  are  for  the  most  part 
remarkably  fine  in  execution.  Each  chapter  has  its 
vignette  representing  a god  in  human  or  animal  form, 
a sacred  emblem,  or  the  deceased  in  adoration  before 
a divinity.  These  little  subjects  are  sometimes  ranged 
horizontally  at  the  top  of  the  text,  which  is  written 
in  vertical  columns  (fig.  158);  sometimes,  like  the 


illuminated  capitals  in  our  mediaeval  manuscripts,  they 
are  scattered  throughout  the  pages.  At  certain  points, 
large  subjects  fill  the  space  from  top  to  bottom  of  the 
papyrus.  The  burial  scene  comes  at  the  beginning ; 
the  judgment  of  the  soul  about  the  middle ; and  the 
arrival  of  the  deceased  in  the  fields  of  Aalu  * at 
the  end  of  the  work.  In  these,  the  artist  seized 
the  opportunity  to  display  his  skill,  and  show  what  he 

The  soul  of  a deceased  Egyptian  was  believed  to  perform  a pro- 
bationary pilgrimage  through  the  lower  world,  in  the  course  of  which 
he  had  to  perform  agricultural  labours  in  the  fields  of  “ Aalu  an 
idea  subsequently  adopted  and  modified  by  the  Greeks,  who  rendered 
"Aalu”  by  “ Elysian.”  [Translator's  note.] 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


169 


could  do.  We  here  see  the  mummy  of  Hunefer  placed 
upright  before  his  stela  and  his  tomb  (fig.  159).  The 
women  of  his  family  bewail  him  ; the  men  and  the 
priest  present  offerings.  The  papyri  of  the  princes 
and  princesses  of  the  family  of  Pinotem  in  the 


Museum  of  Boulak  show  that  the  best  traditions 
of  the  art  were  yet  in  force  at  Thebes  in  the  time 
of  the  Twenty-first  Dynasty.  Under  the  succeed- 

ing dynasties,  that  art  fell  into  rapid  decadence; 
and  during  some  centuries  the  drawings  continue  to 
be  coarse  and  valueless.  The  collapse  of  the  Persian 


170 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


rule  produced  a period  of  Renaissance.  Tombs  of  the 
Greek  time  have  yielded  papyri  with  vignettes  care- 
fully executed  in  a dry  and  minute  style  which  offers 
a singular  contrast  to  the  breadth  and  boldness  of 
the  Pharaonic  ages.  The  broad-tipped  reed-pen  was 
thrown  aside  for  the  pen  with  a fine  point,  and  the 
scribes  vied  with  each  other  as  to  which  should  trace 
the  most  attenuated  lines.  The  details  with  which 
they  overloaded  their  figures,  the  elaboration  of  the 
beard  and  the  hair,  and  the  folds  of  the  garments,  are 
sometimes  so  minute  that  it  is  scarcely  possible  to 
distinguish  them  without  a magnifying  glass.  Precious 
as  these  documents  are,  they  give  a very  insufficient 
idea  of  the  ability  and  technical  methods  of  the  artists 
of  ancient  Egypt.  It  is  to  the  walls  of  their  temples 
and  tombs  that  we  must  turn,  if  we  desire  to  study 
their  principles  of  composition. 

Their  conventional  system  differed  materially  from 
our  own.  Man  or  beast,  the  subject  was  never  any- 
thing but  a profile  relieved  against  a flat  background. 
Their  object,  therefore,  was  to  select  forms  which 
presented  a characteristic  outline  capable  of  being 
reproduced  in  pure  line  upon  a plane  surface.  As 
regarded  animal  life,  the  problem  was  in  no  wise  com- 
plicated. The  profile  of  the  back  and  body,  the  head 
and  neck,  carried  in  undulating  lines  parallel  with  the 
ground,  were  outlined  at  one  sweep  of  the  pencil.  The 
legs  also  are  well  detached  from  the  body.  The  animals 
themselves  are  lifelike,  each  with  the  gait  and  action 
and  flexion  of  the  limbs  peculiar  to  its  species.  The 
slow  and  measured  tread  of  the  ox ; the  short  step, 
the  meditative  ear,  the  ironical  mouth  of  the  ass;  the 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  I 7 I 

abrupt  little  trot  of  the  goat,  the  spring  of  the  hunting 
greyhound,  are  all  rendered  with  invariable  success  of 
outline  and  expression.  Turning  from  domestic  animals 
to  wild  beasts,  the  perfection  of  treatment  is  the  same. 
The  calm  strength  of  the  lion  in  repose,  the  stealth)" 
and  sleepy  tread  of  the  leopard,  the  grimace  of  the 
ape,  the  slender  grace  of  the  gazelle  and  the  antelope, 
have  never  been  better  expressed  than  in  Egypt.  But 
it  was  not  so  easy  to  project  man — the  whole  man — 
upon  a plane  surface  without  some  departure  from 
nature.  A man  cannot  be  satisfactorily  reproduced  by 
means  of  mere  lines,  and  a profile  outline  necessarily 
excludes  too  much  of  his  person.  The  form  of  the 
forehead  and  the  nose,  the  curvature  of  the  lips,  the 
cut  of  the  ear,  disappear  when  the  head  is  drawn  full 
face  ; but,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  necessary  that  the 
bust  should  be  presented  full  face,  in  order  to  give 
the  full  development  of  the  shoulders,  and  that  the  two 
arms  may  be  visible  to  right  and  left  of  the  body.  The 
contours  of  the  trunk  are  best  modelled  in  a three- 
quarters  view,  whereas  the  legs  show  to  most  advantage 
when  seen  sidewise.  The  Egyptians  did  not  hesitate 
to  combine  these  contradictory  points  of  view  in  one 
single  figure.  The  head  is  almost  always  given  in 
profile,  but  is  provided  with  a full-face  eye  and  placed 
upon  a full-face  bust.  The  full-face  bust  adorns  a 
trunk  seen  from  a three-quarters  point  of  view,  and 
this  trunk  is  supported  upon  legs  depicted  in  profile. 
Very  seldom  do  we  meet  with  figures  treated  according 
to  our  own  rules  of  perspective.  Most  of  the  minor 
personages  represented  in  the  tomb  of  Khnumhotep 
seem,  however,  to  have  made  an  effort  to  emancipate 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


I 7 2 


themselves  from  the  law  of  malformation.  Their  bodies 
are  given  in  profile,  as  well  as  their  heads  and  legs ; 
but  they  thrust  forward  first  one  shoulder  and  then 
the  other,  in  order  to  show  both  arms  (fig.  160),  and 
the  effect  is  not  happy.  Yet,  if  we  examine  the  treat- 
ment of  the  farm  servant  who  is  cramming  a goose,  and, 
above  all,  the  figure  of  the  standing  man  who  throws 
his  weight  upon  the  neck  of  a gazelle  to  make  it  kneel 
down  (fig.  1 6 1 ),  we  shall  see  that  the  action  of  the  arms 
and  hips  is  correctly  rendered,  that  the  form  of  the 
back  is  quite  right,  and  that  the  prominence  of  the  chest 
— thrown  forward  in  proportion  as  the  shoulders  and 


arms  are  thrown  back — is  drawn  without  any  exagge- 
ration. The  wrestlers  of  the  Beni  Hassan  tombs,  the 
dancers  and  servants  of  the  Theban  catacombs,  attack, 
struggle,  posture,  and  go  about  their  work  with  perfect 
naturalness  and  ease  (fig.  162).  These,  however,  are 
exceptions.  Tradition,  as  a rule,  was  stronger  than 
nature,  and  to  the  end  of  the  chapter,  the  Egyptian 
masters  continued  to  deform  the  human  figure.  Their 
men  and  women  are  actual  monsters  from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  anatomist ; and  yet,  after  all,  they  are 
neither  so  ugly  nor  so  ridiculous  as  might  be  supposed 
by  those  who  have  seen  only  the  wretched  copies  so 
often  made  by  our  modern  artists.  The  wrong  parts 


Fig.  160. 


Fig.  I 6 i . 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


i/3 


are  joined  to  the  right  parts  with  so  much  skill  that 
they  seem  to  have  grown  there.  The  natural  lines  and 
the  fictitious  lines  follow  and  complement  each  other 
so  ingeniously,  that  the  former  appear  to  give  rise 
of  necessity  to  the  latter.  The  conventionalities  of 
Egyptian  art  once  accepted,  we  cannot  sufficiently 
admire  the  technical  skill  displayed  by  the  draughtsman. 
His  line  was  pure,  firm,  boldly  begun,  and  as  boldly 
prolonged.  Ten  or  twelve  strokes  of  the  brush  sufficed 
to  outline  a figure  the  size  of  life.  The  whole  head, 


Fig.  162. 


from  the  nape  of  the  neck  to  the  rise  of  the  throat 
above  the  collar-bone,  was  executed  at  one  sweep. 
Two  long  undulating  lines  gave  the  external  contour 
of  the  body  from  the  armpits  to  the  ends  of  the  feet. 
Two  more  determined  the  outlines  of  the  legs,  and  two 
the  arms.  The  details  of  costume  and  ornaments,  at 
first  but  summarily  indicated,  were  afterwards  taken  up 
one  by  one,  and  minutely  finished.  We  may  almost 
count  the  locks  of  the  hair,  the  plaits  of  the  linen,  the 
inlayings  of  the  girdles  and  bracelets.  This  mixture 
of  artless  science  and  intentional  awkwardness,  of 
rapid  execution  and  patient  finish,  excludes  neither 


174 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


elegance  of  form,  nor  grace  of  attitude,  nor  truth  of 
movement.  These  personages  are  of  strange  aspect, 
but  they  live  ; and  to  those  who  will  take  the  trouble 
to  look  at  them  without  prejudice,  their  very  strangeness 
has  a charm  about  it  which  is  often  lacking  to  works 
more  recent  in  date  and  more  strictly  true  to  nature. 

We  admit,  then,  that  the  Egyptians  could  draw. 
Were  the}',  as  it  has  been  ofttimes  asserted,  ignorant 
of  the  art  of  composition  ? We  will  take  a scene  at 
hazard  from  a Theban  tomb — that  scene  which  repre- 
sents the  funerary  repast  offered  to  Prince  Horemheb 


Fie.  1 63. 


by  the  members  of  his  family  (fig.  163).  The  subject 
is  half  ideal,  half  real.  The  dead  man,  and  those 
belonging  to  him  who  are  no  longer  of  this  world,  are 
depicted  in  the  society  of  the  living.  They  are  present, 
yet  aloof.  They  assist  at  the  banquet,  but  they  do  not 
actually  take  part  in  it.  Horemheb  sits  on  a folding 
stool  to  the  left  of  the  spectator.  He  dandles  on  his 
knee  a little  princess,  daughter  of  Amenhotep  III., 
whose  foster-father  he  was,  and  who  died  before  him. 
His  mother,  Souit,  sits  at  his  right  hand  a little  way 
behind,  enthroned  in  a large  chair.  She  holds  his  arm 
with  her  left  hand,  and  with  the  right  she  offers  him 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  I 75 

a lotus  blossom  and  bud.  A tiny  gazelle  which  was 
probably  buried  with  her,  like  the  pet  gazelle  discovered 
beside  Queen  Isi-em-Kheb  in  the  hiding-place  at  Dayr- 
el-Baharee,  is  tied  to  one  of  the  legs  of  the  chair.  This 
ghostly  group  is  of  heroic  size,  the  rule  being  that  gods 
are  bigger  than  men,  kings  bigger  than  their  subjects 
and  the  dead  bigger  than  the  living.  Horemheb,  his 
mother,  and  the  women  standing  before  them,  occupy 
the  front  level,  or  foreground.  The  relations  and  friends 
are  ranged  in  line  facing  their  deceased  ancestors,  and 
appear  to  be  talking  one  with  another.  The  feast  has 
begun.  The  jars  of  wine  and  beer,  placed  in  rows 
upon  wooden  stands,  are  already  unsealed.  Two  young 
slaves  rub  the  hands  and  necks  of  the  living  guests 
with  perfumes  taken  from  an  alabaster  vase.  Two 
women  dressed  in  robes  of  ceremony  present  offerings 
to  the  group  of  dead,  consisting  of  vases  filled  with 
flowers,  perfumes,  and  grain.  These  they  place  in  turn 
upon  a square  table.  Three  others  dance,  sing,  and 
play  upon  the  lute,  by  way  of  accompaniment  to  those 
acts  of  homage.  In  the  picture,  as  in  fact,  the  tomb 
is  the  place  of  entertainment.  There  is  no  other 
background  to  the  scene  than  the  wall  covered  with 
hieroglyphs,  along  which  the  guests  were  seated  during 
the  ceremony.  Elsewhere,  the  scene  of  action,  if  in  the 
open  country,  is  distinctly  indicated  by  trees  and  tufts 
of  grass ; by  red  sand,  if  in  the  desert ; and  by  a maze 
of  reeds  and  lotus  plants,  if  in  the  marshes.  A lady 
of  quality  comes  in  from  a walk  (fig.  164).  One  of  her 
daughters,  being  athirst,  takes  a long  draught  from  a 
“ goullah ; ” two  little  naked  children  with  shaven 
heads,  a boy  and  a girl,  who  ran  to  meet  their  mother 


Fig.  164. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


177 


at  the  gate,  are  made  happy  with  toys  brought  home 
and  handed  to  them  by  a servant.  A trellised  enclosure 
covered  with  vines,  and  trees  laden  with  fruit,  are  shown 
above;  yonder,  therefore,  is  the  garden,  but  the  lady 
and  her  daughters  have  passed  through  it  without 
stopping,  and  are  now  indoors.  The  front  of  the  house 
is  half  put  in  and  half  left  out,  so  that  we  may  observe 
what  is  going  on  inside.  We  accordingly  see  three 
attendants  hastening  to  serve  their  mistresses  with 
refreshments.  The  picture  is  not  badly  composed,  and 
it  would  need  but  little  alteration  if  transferred  to 
a modern  canvas.  The  same  old  awkwardness,  or 
rather  the  same  old  obstinate  custom,  which  compelled 
the  Egyptian  artist  to  put  a profile  head  upon  a full-face 
bust,  has,  however,  prevented  him  from  placing  his 
middle  distance  and  background  behind  his  foreground. 
He  has,  therefore,  been  reduced  to  adopt  certain  more 
or  less  ingenious  contrivances,  in  order  to  make  up  for 
an  almost  complete  absence  of  perspective. 

Again,  when  a number  of  persons  engaged  in  the 
simultaneous  performance  of  any  given  act  were  repre- 
sented on  the  same  level,  they  were  isolated  as  much 
as  possible,  so  that  each  man’s  profile  might  not  cover 
that  of  his  neighbour.  When  this  was  not  done,  they 
were  arranged  to  overlap  each  other,  and  this,  despite 
the  fact  that  all  stood  on  the  one  level ; so  that  they 
have  actually  but  two  dimensions  and  no  thickness.  A 
herdsman  walking  in  the  midst  of  his  oxen  plants  his 
feet  upon  precisely  the  same  ground-line  as  the  beast 
which  interposes  between  his  body  and  the  spectator. 
The  most  distant  soldier  of  a company  which  advances 
in  good  marching  order  to  the  sound  of  the  trumpet, 


12 


178 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


has  his  head  and  feet  on  exactly  the  same  level  as  the 
head  and  feet  of  the  foremost  among  his  comrades 
(fig.  165).  When  a squadron  of  chariots  defiles  before 
Pharaoh,  one  would  declare  that  their  wheels  all  ran  in 


the  self-same  ruts,  were  it  not  that  the  body  of  the  first 
chariot  partly  hides  the  horses  by  which  the  second 
chariot  is  drawn.  In  these  examples  the  people  and 
objects  are,  either  accidentally  or  naturally,  placed  so 


near  together,  that  the  anomaly  does  not  strike  one 
as  too  glaring.  In  taking  these  liberties,  the  Egyptian 
artist  but  anticipated  a contrivance  adopted  by  the 
Greek  sculptor  of  a later  age.  Elsewhere,  the  Egyptian 
has  occasionally  approached  nearer  to  truth  of  treat- 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


179 


ment.  The  archers  of  Rameses  III.  at  Medinet-Haboo 
make  an  effort  which  is  almost  successful,  to  present 
themselves  in  perspective.  The  row  of  helmets  slopes 
downwards,  and  the  row  of  bows  slopes  upward,  with 
praiseworthy  regularity  ; but  the  men’s  feet  are  all  on 
the  same  level,  and  do  not,  therefore,  follow  the  direction 
of  the  other  lines*  (fig.  167).  This  mode  of  represen- 
tation is  not  uncommon  during  the  Theban  period.  It 
was  generally  adopted  when  men  or  animals,  ranged  in 
line,  had  to  be  shown  in  the 
act  of  doing  the  same  thing ; 
but  it  was  subject  to  the 
grave  drawback  (or  what  was 
in  Egyptian  eyes  the  grave 
drawback)  of  showing  the 
body  of  the  first  man  only, 
and  of  almost  entirely  hiding 
the  rest  of  the  figures.  When, 
therefore,  it  was  found  im- 
possible to  range  all  upon 
the  same  level  without  hiding 
some  of  their  number,  the  artist  frequently  broke 
his  masses  up  into  groups,  and  placed  one  above  the 
other  on  the  same  vertical  plane.  Their  height  in 
no  wise  depends  on  the  place  they  occupy  in  the 
perspective  of  the  tableau,  but  only  upon  the  number 
of  rows  required  by  the  artist  to  carry  out  his  idea. 
If  two  rows  of  figures  are  sufficient,  he  divides  his 

* The  upper  line  of  the  bows  should,  however,  incline  downwards, 
like  the  line  of  helmets  ; and  the  arrows,  being  on  the  level  of  the 
point  of  sight,  should  of  course  be  strictly  horizontal.  [Translator’s 
note.] 


Fig.  167. 


I 80  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

space  horizontally  into  equal  parts ; if  he  requires 
three  rows,  he  divides  it  into  three  parts ; and  so 
on.  When,  however,  it  is  a 
question  of  mere  accessories, 
they  are  made  out  upon  a 
smaller  scale.  Secondary  scenes 
are  generally  separated  by  a 
horizontal  line,  but  this  line 
is  not  indispensable.  When 
masses  of  figures  formed  in 
regular  order  had  to  be  shown, 
the  vertical  planes  lapped  over, 
so  to  speak,  according  to  the 
caprice  of  the  limner.  At  the 
battle  of  Kadesh,  the  files  of 
Egyptian  infantry  rise  man 
above  man,  waist  high,  from  top  to  bottom  of  the 
phalanx  (fig.  168)  ; while  those  of  the  Hittite  battalions 
show  but  one  head  above 
another  (fig.  169). 

It  was  not  only  in 
their  treatment  of  men 
and  animals  that  the 
Egyptians  allowed  them- 
selves this  latitude. 

Houses,  trees,  land  and 
water,  were  as  freely  mis- 
represented. An  oblong 
rectangle  placed  upright, 
or  on  its  side,  and  covered  with  regular  zigzags,  repre- 
sents a canal.  Lest  one  should  be  in  doubt  as  to  its 
meaning,  fishes  and  crocodiles  are  put  in,  to  show  that 


Fig.  1 68. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


I 8 E 


it  is  water,  and  nothing  but  water.  Boats  are  seen 
floating  upright  upon  this  edgewise  surface ; the  flocks 
ford  it  where  it  is  shallow ; and  the  angler  with  his  line 
marks  the  spot  where  the  water  ends  and  the  bank 
begins.  Sometimes  the  rectangle  is  seen  suspended 
like  a framed  picture,  at  about  half  way  of  the  height 
of  five  or  six  palm  trees  (fig.  1 70) ; whereby  we  are 
given  to  understand  a tank  bordered  on  both  sides  by 
trees.  Sometimes,  again,  as  in  the  tomb  of  Rekhmara, 
the  trees  are  laid  down  in  rows  round  the  four  sides 
of  a square  pond,  while  a 


dant  examples  of  contrivances  of  this  kind  ; and, 
having  noted  them,  we  end  by  not  knowing  which 
most  to  wonder  at — the  obstinacy  of  the  Egyptians  in 
not  seeking  to  discover  the  natural  laws  of  perspective, 
or  the  inexhaustible  wealth  of  resource  which  enabled 
them  to  invent  so  many  false  relations  between  the 
various  parts  of  their  subjects. 

When  employed  upon  a very  large  scale,  their 
methods  of  composition  shock  the  eye  less  than  when 
applied  to  small  subjects.  We  instinctively  feel  that 
even  the  ablest  artist  must  sometimes  have  played 
fast  and  loose  with  the  laws  of  perspective,  if  tasked 
to  cover  the  enormous  surfaces  of  Egyptian  pylons. 


profile  boat  conveying  a 
dead  man  in  his  shrine, 
hauled  by  slaves  also 
shown  in  profile,  floats 
on  the  vertical  surface  of 
the  water.  The  Theban 
catacombs  of  the  Rames- 
side  period  supply  abun- 


Fig. 170. 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


I 82 

Hence  the  unities  of  the  subject  are  never  strictly 
observed  in  these  enormous  bas-reliefs.  The  main 
object  being  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  a victorious 
Pharaoh,  that  Pharaoh  necessarily  plays  the  leading 
part  ; but  instead  of  selecting  from  among  his  striking 
deeds  some  one  leading  episode  pre-eminently  calcu- 
lated to  illustrate  his  greatness,  the  Egyptian  artist 


Fig.  171. 


delighted  to  present  the  successive  incidents  of  his 
campaigns  at  a single  coup  d'oeil.  Thus  treated,  the 
pylons  of  Luxor  and  the  Ramesseum  show  a Syrian 
night  attack  upon  the  Egyptian  camp  ; a seizure  of 
spies  sent  by  the  prince  of  the  Kheta  for  the  express 
purpose  of  being  caught  and  giving  false  intelligence  of 
his  movements  ; the  king’s  household  troops  surprised 
and  broken  by  the  Khetan  chariots ; the  battle  of 
Kadesh  and  its  various  incidents,  so  furnishing  us,  as 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  I 83 

it  were,  with  a series  of  illustrated  despatches  of  the 
Syrian  campaign  undertaken  by  Rameses  II.  in  the 
fifth  year  of  his  reign.  After  this  fashion  precisely 
did  the  painters  of  the  earliest  Italian  schools  depict 
within  the  one  field,  and  in  one  uninterrupted  sequence, 
the  several  episodes  of  a single  narrative.  The  scenes 


Fig.  172. 

are  irregularly  dispersed  over  the  surface  of  the  wall, 
without  any  marked  lines  of  separation,  and,  as  with 
the  bas-reliefs  upon  the  column  of  Trajan,  one  is  often 
in  danger  of  dividing  the  groups  in  the  wrong  place, 
and  of  confusing  the  characters.  This  method  is 
reserved  almost  exclusively  for  official  art.  In  the 
interior  decoration  of  temples  and  tombs,  the  various 


I 84  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

parts  of  the  one  subject  are  distributed  in  rows  ranged 
one  above  the  other,  from  the  ground  line  to  the 
cornice.  Thus  another  difficulty  is  added  to  the 
number  of  those  which  prevent  us  from  understanding 
the  style  and  intention  of  Egyptian  design.  We  often 
imagine  that  we  are  looking  at  a series  of  isolated 
scenes,  when  in  fact  we  have  before  our  eyes  the 
disjecta  membra  of  a single  composition.  Take,  for 
example,  one  wall-side  of  the  tomb  of  Ptah-hotep  at 
Sakkarah  (fig.  172).  If  we  would  discover  the  link 
which  divides  these  separate  scenes,  we  shall  do  well  to 
compare  this  wall-subject  with  the  mosaic  of  Pales- 
trina (fig.  173),  a monument  of  Graeco-Roman  time 
which  represents  almost  the  same  scenes,  grouped, 
however,  after  a style  more  familiar  to  our  ways  of 
seeing  and  thinking.  The  Nile  occupies  the  immediate 
foreground  of  the  picture,  and  extends  as  far  as  the 
foot  of  the  mountains  in  the  distance.  Towns  rise 
from  the  water’s  edge  ; and  not  only  towns,  but  obelisks, 
farm-houses,  and  towers  of  Graeco-Italian  style,  more 
like  the  buildings  depicted  in  Pompeian  landscapes 
than  the  monuments  of  the  Pharaohs.  Of  these 
buildings,  only  the  large  temple  in  the  middle  distance 
to  the  right  of  the  picture,  with  its  pylon  gateway  and 
its  four  Osirian  colossi,  recalls  the  general  arrangement 
of  Egyptian  architecture.  To  the  left,  a party  of 
sportsmen  in  a large  boat  are  seen  in  the  act  of 
harpooning  the  hippopotamus  and  crocodile.  To  the 
right,  a group  of  legionaries,  drawn  up  in  front  of 
a temple  and  preceded  by  a priest,  salute  a passing 
galley.  Towards  the  middle  of  the  foreground,  in  the 
shade  of  an  arched  trellis  thrown  across  a small  branch 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


185 


of  the  Nile,  some  half-clad  men  and  women  are  singing 
and  carousing.  Little  papyrus  skiffs,  each  rowed  by  a 
single  boatman,  and  other  vessels  fill  the  vacant  spaces 
of  the  composition.  Behind  the  buildings  we  see  the 


Fig.  173- 


commencement  of  the  desert.  The  water  forms  large 
pools  at  the  base  of  overhanging  hills,  and  various 
animals,  real  or  imaginary,  are  pursued  by  shaven- 
headed hunters  in  the  upper  part  of  the  picture.  Now, 
precisely  after  the  manner  of  the  Roman  mosaicist,  the  old 


1 86 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Egyptian  artist  placed  himself,  as  it  were,  on  the  Nile, 
and  reproduced  all  that  lay  between  his  own  standpoint 
and  the  horizon.  In  the  wall-painting  (fig.  172)  the 
river  flows  along  the  line  next  the  floor,  boats  come  and 
go,  and  boatmen  fall  to  blows  with  punting  poles  and 
gaffs.  In  the  division  next  above,  we  see  the  river  bank 
and  the  adjoining  flats,  where  a party  of  slaves,  hidden 
in  the  long  grasses,  trap  and  catch  birds.  Higher 
still,  boat-making,  rope-making,  and  fish-curing  are 
going  on.  Finally,  in  the  highest  register  of  all,  next 
the  ceiling,  are  depicted  the  barren  hills  and  undulating 
plains  of  the  desert,  where  greyhounds  chase  the 
gazelle,  and  hunters  trammel  big  game  with  the  lasso. 
Each  longitudinal  section  corresponds,  in  fact,  with  a 
plane  of  the  landscape  ; but  the  artist,  instead  of  placing 
his  planes  in  perspective,  has  treated  them  separately, 
and  placed  them  one  above  the  other.  We  find  the 
same  disposition  of  the  parts  in  all  Egyptian  tomb  paint- 
ings. Scenes  of  inundation  and  civil  life  are  ranged 
along  the  base  of  the  wall,  mountain  subjects  and  hunt- 
ing scenes  being  invariably  placed  high  up.  Sometimes, 
interposed  between  these  two  extremes,  the  artist 
has  introduced  subjects  dealing  with  the  pursuits  of 
the  herdsmen,  the  field  labourer,  and  the  craftsman. 
Elsewhere,  he  suppresses  these  intermediary  episodes, 
and  passes  abruptly  from  the  watery  to  the  sandy 
region.  Hence,  the  mosaic  of  Palestrina  and  the  tomb- 
paintings  of  Pharaonic  Egypt  reproduce  the  same 
group  of  subjects,  treated  after  the  conventional  styles 
and  methods  of  two  different  schools  of  art.  Like  the 
mosaic,  the  wall  scenes  of  the  tomb  formed,  not  a 
series  of  independent  scenes,  but  an  ordinary  compo- 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


187 


sition,  the  unity  of  which  is  readily  recognised  by 
such  as  are  skilled  to  read  the  art-language  of  the 
period. 


TECHNICAL  PROCESSES. 

The  preparation  of  the  surface  about  to  be  decorated 
demanded  much  time  and  care.  Seeing  how  imperfect 
were  the  methods  of  construction,  and  how  impossible 
it  was  for  the  architect  to  ensure  a perfectly  level  sur- 
face for  the  facing  stones  of  his  temple-walls  and  pylons, 
the  decorator  had  perforce  to  accommodate  himself  to 
a surface  slightly  rounded  in  some  places  and  slightly 
hollowed  in  others.  Even  the  blocks  of  which  it  was 
formed  were  scarcely  homogeneous  in  texture.  The 
limestone  strata  in  which  the  Theban  catacombs  were 
excavated  were  almost  always  interspersed  with  flint 
nodules,  fossils,  and  petrified  shells.  These  faults  were 
variously  remedied  according  as  the  decoration  was  to 
be  sculptured  or  painted.  If  painted,  the  wall  was  first 
roughly  levelled,  and  then  overlaid  with  a coat  of  black 
clay  and  chopped  straw,  similar  to  the  mixture  used  for 
brick-making.  If  sculptured,  then  the  artist  had  to 
arrange  his  subject  so  as  to  avoid  the  inequalities  of  the 
stone  as  much  as  possible.  When  these  occurred  in 
the  midst  of  the  figure  subjects,  and  if  they  did  not  offer 
too  stubborn  a resistance  to  the  chisel,  they  were  simply 
worked  over ; otherwise  the  piece  was  cut  out  and  a 
new  piece  fitted  in,  or  the  hole  was  filled  up  with  white 
cement.  This  mending  process  was  no  trifling  matter. 
We  could  point  to  tomb-chambers  where  every  wall  is 
thus  inlaid  to  the  extent  of  one  quarter  of  its  surface. 
The  preliminary  work  being  done,  the  whole  was 


i 88 


EGYPTIAN'  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


covered  with  a thin  coat  of  fine  plaster  mixed  with  white 
of  egg,  which  hid  the  mud-wash  or  the  piecing,  and 
prepared  a level  and  polished  surface  for  the  pencil  of 
the  artist.  In  chambers,  or  parts  of  chambers,  which 
have  been  left  unfinished,  and  even  in  the  quarries,  we 
constantly  find  sketches  of  intended  bas-reliefs,  outlined 
in  red  or  black  ink.  The  copy  was  generally  executed 
upon  a small  scale,  then  squared  off,  and  transferred  to 
the  wall  by  the  pupils  and  assistants  of  the  master. 


Fig-  1 74- 


As  in  certain  scenes  carefully  copied  by  Prisse  from 
the  walls  of  Theban  tombs,  the  subject  is  occasionally 
indicated  by  only  two  or  three  rapid  strokes  of  the  reed 
(fig.  174).  Elsewhere,  the  outline  is  fully  made  out, 
and  the  figures  only  await  the  arrival  of  the  sculptor. 
Some  designers  took  pains  to  determine  the  position 
of  the  shoulders,  and  the  centre  of  gravity  of  the  bodies, 
by  vertical  and  horizontal  lines,  upon  which,  by  means 
of  a dot,  they  noted  the  height  of  the  knee,  the  hips, 
and  other  parts  (fig.  175).  Others  again,  more  self- 
reliant,  attacked  their  subject  at  once,  and  drew  in  the 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


I SQ- 


figures  without  the  aid  of  guiding  points.  Such  were 
the  artists  who  decorated  the  catacomb  of  Seti  I.,  and 
the  southern  walls  of  the  temple  of  Abydos.  Their 
outlines  are  so  firm,  and  their  facility  is  so  surprising, 
that  they  have  been  suspected  of  stencilling ; but  no 
one  who  has  closely  examined  their  figures,  or  who  has 
taken  the  trouble  to  measure  them  with  a compass,  can 
maintain  that  opinion.  The  forms  of  some  are  slighter 
than  the  forms  of  others  ; while  in  some  the  contours 
of  the  chest  are  more  accentuated,  and  the  legs  farther 
apart,  than  in  others.  The  master  had  little  to  correct 
in  the  work  of  these  sub- 
ordinates. Here  and  there 
he  made  a head  more  erect, 
accentuated  or  modified  the 
outline  of  a knee,  or 
improved  some  detail  of 
arrangement.  In  one  in- 
stance, however,  at  Kom 
Ombo,  on  the  ceiling  of  a Graeco-Roman  portico, 
some  of  the  divinities  had  been  falsely  oriented, 
their  feet  being  placed  where  their  arms  should 
have  been.  The  master  consequently  outlined  them 
afresh,  and  on  the  same  squared  surface,  without 
effacing  the  first  drawing.  Here,  at  all  events,  the 
mistake  was  discovered  in  time.  At  Karnak,  on 
the  north  wall  of  the  hypostyle  hall,  and  again  at 
Medinet  Haboo,  the  faults  of  the  original  design  were 
not  noticed  till  the  sculptor  had  finished  his  part  of  the 
work.  The  figures  of  Seti  I.  and  Rameses  III.  were 
thrown  too  far  back,  and  threatened  to  overbalance 
themselves  ; so  they  were  smoothed  over  with  cement 


190  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

and  cut  anew.  Now,  the  cement  has  flaked  off,  and 
the  work  of  the  first  chisel  is  exposed  to  view.  Seti  I. 
and  Rameses  III.  have  each  two  profiles,  the  one  very 
lightly  marked,  the  other  boldly  cut  into  the  surface  of 
the  stone  (fig.  176). 

The  sculptors  of  ancient  Egypt 
were  not  so  well  equipped  as 
those  of  our  own  day.  A kneel- 
ing scribe  in  limestone  at  the 
Boulak  Museum  has  been  carved 
with  the  chisel,  the  grooves  left 
by  the  tool  being  visible  on  his 
Fig.  176.  skin.  A statue  in  grey  serpen- 

tine, in  the  same  collection,  bears  traces  of  the  use 
of  two  different  tools,  the  body  being  spotted  all 
over  with  point-marks,  and  the  unfinished  head  being 
blocked  out  splinter  by  splinter  with  a small  hammer. 
Similar  observations,  and  the  study  of  the  monuments, 
show  that  the  drill  (fig.  1 77)>  the 
toothed -chisel,  and  the  gouge 
were  also  employed.  There  have 
been  endless  discussions  as  to 
whether  these  tools  were  of  iron 
or  of  bronze.  Iron,  it  is  argued, 
was  deemed  impure.  No  one 
could  make  use  of  it,  even  for 
the  basest  needs  of  daily  life, 
without  incurring  a taint  prejudicial  to  the  soul  both  in 
this  world  and  the  next.  But  the  impurity  of  any 
given  object  never  sufficed  to  prevent  the  employment 
of  it  when  required.  Pigs  also  were  impure  ; yet  the 
Egyptians  bred  them.  They  bred  them,  indeed,  so 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  I 9 I 

abundantly  in  certain  districts,  that  our  worthy  Hero- 
dotus tells  how  the  swine  were  turned  into  the  fields 
after  seed-sowing,  in  order  that  they  might  tread  in  the 
grain.  So  also  iron,  like  many  other  things  in  Egypt, 
was  pure  or  impure  according  to  circumstances.  If 
some  traditions  held  it  up  to  odium  as  an  evil  thing, 
and  stigmatised  it  as  the  “ bones  of  Typhon,”  other 
traditions  equally  venerable  affirmed  that  it  was  the 
very  substance  of  the  canopy  of  heaven.  So  authorita- 
tive was  this  view,  that  iron  was  currently  known  as 
“ Ba-cn-pct,”  or  the  celestial  metal.f  The  few  frag- 
ments of  tools  which  have  been  found  in  the  masonry 
of  the  pyramids  are  of  iron,  not  bronze ; and  if  ancient 
iron  objects  are  nowadays  of  exceptional  rarity  as  com- 
pared with  ancient  bronze  objects,  it  is  because  iron 
differs  from  bronze,  inasmuch  as  it  is  not  protected 
from  destruction  by  its  oxide.  Rust  speedily  devours 
it,  and  it  needs  a rare  combination  of  favourable  cir- 
cumstances to  preserve  it  intact.  If,  however,  it  is 
quite  certain  that  the  Egyptians  were  acquainted  with, 
and  made  use  of,  iron,  it  is  no  less  certain  that  they 
were  wholly  unacquainted  with  steel.  This  being  the 
case,  one  asks  how  they  can  possibly  have  dealt  at  will 
upon  the  hardest  rocks,  even  upon  such  as  we  our- 
selves hesitate  to  attack,  namely,  diorite,  basalt,  and  the 
granite  of  Syene.  The  manufacturers  of  antiquities  who 
sculpture  granite  for  the  benefit  of  tourists,  have  found 
a simple  solution  of  this  problem.  They  work  with  some 


* The  late  T.  Deveria  ingeniously  conjectured  that  “ Ba-en-pet  ” 
(iron  of  heaven)  might  mean  the  ferruginous  substance  of  meteoric 
stones.  See  Melanges  d' Archcologic  Egyplienne  et  Assyrienne,  vol.  i. 
[Translator’s  note.] 


192 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


twenty  common  iron  chisels  at  hand,  which  after  a very 
few  turns  are  good  for  nothing.  When  one  is  blunted, 
they  take  up  another,  and  so  on  till  the  stock  is 
exhausted.  Then  they  go  to  the  forge,  and  put  their 
tools  into  working  order  again.  The  process  is  neither 
so  long  nor  so  difficult  as  might  be  supposed.  In  the 
Boulak  Museum  there  may  be  seen  a life-size  head, 
which  was  produced  from  a block  of  black  and  red 
granite  in  less  than  a fortnight  by  one  of  the  best 
forgers  in  Luxor.  I have  no  doubt  that  the  ancient 
Egyptians  worked  in  precisely  the  same  way,  and 
mastered  the  hardest  stones  by  the  use  of  iron.  The 
means  once  discovered,  practice  soon  taught  them  the 
manual  methods  by  which  their  labour  might  be 
lightened,  and  their  tools  made  to  yield  results  as 
delicate  and  subtle  as  those  which  we  achieve  with  our 
own.  As  soon  as  the  learner  knew  how  to  manage  the 
point  and  the  mallet,  his  master  set  him  to  copy  a series 
of  graduated  models  representing  an  animal  in  various 
stages  of  completion,  or  a part  of  the  human  body,  or 
the  whole  human  body,  from  the  first  rough  sketch  to 
the  finished  design  (fig.  178).  Every  year,  these  models 
are  found  in  sufficient  number  to  establish  examples 
of  progressive  series.  Apart  from  isolated  specimens 
which  are  picked  up  everywhere,  the  Boulak  collection 
contains  a set  of  fifteen  from  Sakkarah,  forty-one  from 
Tanis,  and  a dozen  from  Thebes  and  Medinet  Haboo. 
They  were  intended  partly  for  the  study  of  bas-reliefs, 
partly  for  the  study  of  sculpture  proper ; and  they 
reveal  the  method  in  use  for  both. 

The  Egyptians  treated  bas-relief  in  three  ways  : 
either  as  a simple  engraving  executed  by  means  of 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


193 


incised  lines ; or  by  cutting  away  the  surface  of  the 
stone  round  the  figure,  and  so  causing  it  to  stand  out 


Fig.  178. 


in  relief  upon  the  wall ; or  by  sinking  the  design  below 
the  wall-surface  and  cutting  it  in  relief  at  the  bottom  of 
the  hollow.  The  first  method  has  the  advantage  of 

13 


194 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


being  expeditious,  and  the  disadvantage  of  not  being 
sufficiently  decorative.  Rameses  III.  made  use  of  it  in 
certain  parts  of  his  temple  at  Medinet  Haboo  ; but,  as  a 
rule,  it  was  preferred  for  stelae  and  small  monuments. 
The  last-named  method  lessened  not  onty  the  danger  of 
damage  to  the  work,  but  the  labour  of  the  workman. 
It  evaded  the  dressing  down  of  the  background,  which 
was  a distinct  economy  of  time,  and  it  left  no  projecting 
work  on  the  face  of  the  surface  ; the  design  being  thus 
sheltered  from  accidental  blows.  The  intermediate 
process  was,  however,  generally  adopted,  and  appears  to 
have  been  taught  in  the  schools  by  preference.  The 
models  were  little  rectangular  tablets,  squared  off  in 
order  that  the  scholar  might  enlarge  or  reduce  the  scale 
of  his  subject  without  departing  from  the  traditional 
proportions.  Some  of  these  models  are  wrought  on 
both  sides  ; but  the  greater  number  are  sculptured  on 
one  side  only.  Sometimes  the  design  represents  a bull ; 
sometimes  the  head  of  a cynocephalous  ape,  of  a ram,  of 
a lion,  of  a divinity.  Occasionally,  we  find  the  subject 
in  duplicate,  side  by  side,  being  roughly  blocked  out  to 
the  left,  and  highly  finished  to  the  right.  In  no  instance 
does  the  relief  exceed  a quarter  of  an  inch,  and  it  is  gene- 
rally even  less.  Not  but  that  the  Egyptians  sometimes 
cut  boldly  into  the  stone.  At  Medinet  Haboo  and  Karnak 
— on  the  higher  parts  of  these  temples,  where  the  work 
is  in  granite  or  sandstone,  and  exposed  to  full  daylight — 
the  bas-relief  decoration  projects  full  6§  inches  above  the 
surface.  Had  it  been  lower,  the  tableaux  would  have 
been,  as  it  were,  absorbed  by  the  flood  of  light  poured 
upon  them,  and  to  the  eye  of  the  spectator  would  have 
presented  only  a confused  network  of  lines.  The  models 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


195 


designed  for  the  study  of  the  round  are  even  more  in- 
structive than  the  rest.  Some  which  have  come  down 
to  us  are  plaster  casts  of  familiar  subjects.  The  head, 
the  arms,  the  legs,  the  trunk,  each  part  of  the  body,  in 
short,  was  separately  cast.  If  a complete  figure  were 
wanted,  the  disjecta  membra  were  put  together,  and  the 
result  was  a statue  of  a man,  or  of  a woman,  kneeling, 
standing,  seated,  squatting,  the  arms  extended  or  falling 
passively  by  the  sides.  This  curious  collection  was 
discovered  at  Tanis.  and  dates  probably  from  Ptolemaic 
times.*  Models  of  the  Pharaonic  ages  are  in  soft  lime- 
stone, and  nearly  all  represent  portraits  of  reigning 
sovereigns.  These  are  best  described  as  cubes  measur- 
ing about  ten  inches  each  way.  The  work  was  begun 
by  covering  one  face  of  a cube  with  a network  of  lines 
crossing  each  other  at  right  angles ; these  regulated 
the  relative  position  of  the  features.  Then  the  opposite 
side  was  attacked,  the  distances  being  taken  from  the 
scale  on  the  reverse  face.  A mere  oval  was  designed 
on  this  first  block ; a projection  in  the  middle  and 
a depression  to  right  and  left,  vaguely  indicating  the 
whereabouts  of  nose  and  eyes.  The  forms  become 
more  definite  as  we  pass  from  cube  to  cube,  and  the 
face  emerges  by  degrees.  The  limit  of  the  contours  is 
marked  off  by  parallel  lines  cut  vertically  from  top 
to  bottom.  The  angles  were  next  cut  away  and 
smoothed  down,  so  as  to  bring  out  the  forms.  Gradu- 
ally the  features  become  disengaged  from  the  block,  the 


* A similar  collection  was  found  by  Mr.  Petrie  at  Tell  Nebesheh 
(the  ancient  Egyptian  city  of  “ Am  "),  in  1S86,  during  his  excavations 
for  the  Egypt  Exploration  Fund.  See  Mr.  Petrie  s forthcoming  volume 
“Tanis.  Part  II.”  [Translators  note.] 


196 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


eye  looks  out,  the  nose  gains  refinement,  the  mouth 
is  developed.  When  the  last  cube  is  reached,  there 
remains  nothing  to  finish  save  the  details  of  the  head- 
dress and  the  basilisk  on  the  brow.  No  scholar’s 
model  in  granite  or  basalt  has  yet  been  found  ; but  the 
Egyptians,  like  our  monumental  masons,  always  kept  a 
stock  of  half-finished  statues  in  hard  stone,  which  could 
be  turned  out  complete  in  a few  hours.  The  hands, 
feet,  and  bust  needed  only  a few  last  touches  ; but  the 
heads  were  merely  blocked  out,  and  the  clothing  left  in 
the  rough.  Half  a day’s  work  then  sufficed  to  transform 
the  face  into  a portrait  of  the  purchaser,  and  to  give  the 
last  new  fashion  to  the  kilt.  The  discovery  of  some 
two  or  three  statues  of  this  kind  has  shown  us  as  much 
of  the  process  as  a series  of  teacher’s  models  might  have 
done.  Volcanic  rocks  could  not  be  cut  with  the  con- 
tinuity and  regularity  of  limestone.  The  point  only 
could  make  any  impression  upon  these  obdurate  mate- 
rials. When,  by  force  of  time  and  patience,  the  work 
had  thus  been  finished  to  the  degree  required,  there 
would  often  remain  some  little  irregularities  of  surface, 
due,  for  example,  to  the  presence  of  nodules  and 
heterogeneous  substances,  which  the  sculptor  had  not 
ventured  to  attack,  for  fear  of  splintering  away  part 
of  the  surrounding  surface.  In  order  to  remove  these 
irregularities,  another  tool  was  employed ; namely,  a 
stone  cut  in  the  form  of  an  axe.  Applying  the  sharp 
edge  of  this  instrument  to  the  projecting  nodule,  the 
artist  struck  it  with  a round  stone  in  place  of  a mallet. 
A succession  of  carefully  calculated  blows  with  these 
rude  tools  pulverised  the  obtrusive  knob,  which  disap- 
peared in  dust.  All  minor  defects  being  corrected,  the 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


197 


monument  still  looked  dull  and  unfinished.  It  was 
necessary  to  polish  it,  in  order  to  efface  the  scars  of 
point  and  mallet.  This  was  a most  delicate  operation  ; 
one  slip  of  the  hand,  or  a moment’s  forgetfulness,  being 
enough  to  ruin  the  labour  of  many  weeks.  The  dex- 
terity of  the  Egyptian  craftsman  was,  however,  so  great 
that  accidents  rarely  happened.  The  Sebekemsaf  of 
Boulak,  the  colossal  Rameses  II.  of  Luxor,  challenge 
the  closest  examination.  The  play  of  light  upon  the 
surface  may  at  first  prevent  the  eye  from  apprehending 
the  fineness  of  the  work ; but,  seen  under  favourable 
circumstances,  the  details  of  knee  and  chest,  of  shoulder 
and  face,  prove  to  be  no  less  subtly  rendered  in  granite 
than  in  limestone.  Excess  of  polish  has  no  more  spoiled 
the  statues  of  ancient  Egypt  than  it  spoiled  those  of  the 
sculptors  of  the  Italian  Renaissance. 

On  leaving  the  hands  of  the  sculptor,  the  work  passed 
into  the  hands  of  the  painter.  It  would  have  been 
deemed  imperfect,  if  left  to  show  the  colour  of  the  stone 
in  which  it  was  cut.  Egyptian  statues  were  painted 
from  head  to  foot.  In  bas-relief,  the  background  was 
left  untouched  and  only  the  figures  were  coloured. 
The  Egyptians  had  more  pigments  at  their  disposal 
than  is  commonly  supposed.  The  more  ancient  painters’ 
palettes — and  we  have  some  which  date  from  the  Fifth 
Dynasty — have  compartments  for  yellow,  red,  blue, 
brown,  white,  black,  and  green.  Others,  of  the  time  of 
the  Eighteenth  Dynasty,  provide  for  three  varieties  of 
yellow,  three  of  brown,  two  of  red,  two  of  blue,  and 
two  of  green  ; making  in  all  some  fourteen  or  sixteen  dif- 
ferent tints.  Black  was  obtained  by  calcining  the  bones 
of  animals.  The  other  substances  employed  in  painting 


1 98 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


were  indigenous  to  the  country.  The  white  is  made 
of  plaster,  mixed  with  albumen  or  honey ; the  yellows 
are  ochre,  or  sulphuret  of  arsenic,  the  orpiment  of  our 
modern  artists ; the  reds  are  ochre,  cinnabar,  or  ver- 
milion ; the  blues  are  pulverised  lapis-lazuli,  or  sulphate 
of  copper.  If  the  substance  was  rare  or  costly,  a sub- 
stitute drawn  from  the  products  of  native  industry  was 
found.  Lapis-lazuli,  for  instance,  was  replaced  by  blue 
glass  made  with  an  admixture  of  sulphate  of  copper,  and 
this  was  reduced  to  an  impalpable  powder.  The  painters 
kept  their  colours  in  tiny  bags,  and,  as  required,  mixed 
them  with  water  containing  a little  adraganth  gum.  They 
laid  them  on  by  means  of  a reed,  or  a more  or  less  fine 
hair  brush.  When  well  prepared,  these  pigments  are 
remarkably  solid,  and  have  changed  but  little  during 
the  lapse  of  ages.  The  reds  have  darkened,  the  greens 
have  faded,  the  blues  have  turned  somewhat  green  or 
grey ; but  this  is  only  on  the  surface.  If  that  surface 
is  scraped  oft',  the  colour  underneath  is  brilliant  and 
unchanged.  Before  the  Theban  period,  no  precautions 
were  taken  to  protect  the  painter’s  work  from  the  action 
of  air  and  light.  About  the  time  of  the  Twentieth 
Dynasty,  however,  it  became  customary  to  coat  painted 
surfaces  with  a transparent  varnish  which  was  soluble 
in  water,  and  which  was  probably  made  from  the  gum 
of  some  kind  of  acacia.  It  was  not  always  used  in  the 
same  manner.  Some  painters  varnished  the  whole 
surface,  while  others  merely  glazed  the  ornaments 
and  accessories,  without  touching  the  flesh-tints  or  the 
clothing.  This  medium  has  cracked  from  the  effects  of 
age,  or  has  become  so  dark  as  to  spoil  the  work  it  was 
intended  to  preserve.  Doubtless,  the  Egyptians  dis- 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


199 


covered  the  bad  effects  produced  by  it,  as  we  no 
longer  meet  with  it  after  the  close  of  the  Twentieth 
Dynasty. 

Egyptian  painters  laid  on  broad,  flat,  uniform  washes 
of  colour,  placed  in  juxtaposition,  but  never  melting 
one  into  another.  They  did  not  paint  in  our  sense  of 
the  term ; they  illuminated.  Just  as  in  drawing  they 
reduced  everything  to  lines,  and  almost  wholly  sup- 
pressed the  internal  modelling,  so  in  adding  colour 
they  still  further  simplified  their  subject  by  merging  all 
varieties  of  tone,  and  all  the  play  of  light  and  shadow, 
in  one  uniform  tint.  Egyptian  painting  is  never  quite 
true,  and  never  quite  false.  Without  pretending  to  the 
faithful  imitation  of  nature,  it  approaches  nature  as 
nearly  as  it  may ; sometimes  understating,  sometimes 
exaggerating,  sometimes  substituting  ideal  or  con- 
ventional renderings  for  strict  realities.  Water,  for 
instance,  is  always  represented  by  a flat  tint  of  blue, 
or  by  blue  covered  with  zigzag  lines  in  black.  The 
buff  and  bluish  hues  of  the  vulture  are  translated  into 
bright  red  and  vivid  blue.  The  flesh-tints  of  men  are 
always  of  a dark  reddish  brown,  and  the  flesh-tints  of 
women  are  pale  yellow.  The  colours  conventionally 
assigned  to  every  animate  and  inanimate  object 
were  taught  in  the  schools,  and  the  recipe  was  handed 
on  unchanged  from  generation  to  generation.  Now 
and  then  it  happened  that  a painter  more  daring 
than  his  contemporaries  ventured  to  break  with  the 
accustomed  tradition.  At  Sakkarah,  under  the  Fifth 
Dynasty,  and  at  Aboo-Simbel,  under  the  Nineteenth 
Dynasty,  we  find  men  with  skins  as  yellow  as  those  of 
the  women ; while  in  the  tombs  of  Thebes  and  Abydos, 


200 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


about  the  time  of  Thothmes  IV.  and  Horemheb,  there 
occur  figures  with  flesh-tints  of  rose-colour.*  But 
these  novelties  lasted  at  most  for  a hundred  years,  and 
then  the  schools  went  back  to  the  old  false  methods. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  supposed  that  the  effect 
produced  by  this  artificial  system  was  grating  or  dis- 
cordant. Even  in  works  of  small  size,  such  as  illu- 
minated MSS.  of  The  Book  of  the  Dead , or  the 
decoration  of  mummy-cases  and  funerary  coffers,  there 
is  both  sweetness  and  harmony  of  colour.  The  most 
brilliant  hues  are  boldly  placed  side  by  side,  yet  with 
full  knowledge  of  the  relations  subsisting  between  these 
hues,  and  of  the  phenomena  which  must  necessarily 
result  from  such  relations.  They  neither  jar  together, 
nor  war  with  each  other,  nor  extinguish  each  other. 
On  the  contrary,  each  maintains  its  own  value,  and 
both,  by  mere  juxtaposition,  give  rise  to  the  half-tones 
which  harmonise  them. 

Turning  from  small  things  to  large  ones,  from 
the  page  of  papyrus,  or  the  panel  of  sycamore  wood, 
to  the  walls  of  tombs  and  temples,  we  find  the 
skilful  employment  of  flat  tints  equally  soothing  and 
agreeable  to  the  eye.  Each  wall  is  treated  as  a 

whole,  the  harmony  of  colour  being  carried  out  from 
bottom  to  top  throughout  the  various  superimposed 
stages  into  which  the  surface  was  divided.  Sometimes 
the  colours  are  distributed  according  to  a scale  of 
rhythm,  or  symmetry,  balancing  and  counterbalancing 
each  other.  Sometimes  one  special  tint  predominates, 

* The  rose-coloured,  or  rather  crimson,  flesh-tints  are  also  to  be 
seen  in  the  famous  speos  at  Bayt-el-Wely,  tempo  Nineteenth  Dynasty. 
[Translator’s  note.] 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


20  I 


thus  determining  the  general  tone  and  subordinating 
every  other  hue.  The  vividness  of  the  final  effect  is 
always  calculated  according  to  the  quality  and  quantity 
of  light  by  which  the  picture  is  destined  to  be  seen.  In 
very  dark  halls  the  force  of  colour  is  carried  as  far  as 
it  will  go,  because  it  would  not  otherwise  have  been 
visible  by  the  flickering  light  of  lamps  and  torches. 
On  outer  wall-surfaces  and  on  pylon-fronts,  it  was  as 
vivid  as  in  the  darkest  depths  of  excavated  catacombs ; 
and  this  because,  no  matter  how  extreme  it  might  be, 
the  sun  would  subdue  its  splendour.  But  in  half-lighted 
places,  such  as  the  porticoes  of  temples  and  the  ante- 
chambers of  tombs,  colour  is  so  dealt  with  as  to  be  soft 
and  discreet.  In  a word,  painting  was  in  Egypt  the 
mere  humble  servant  of  architecture  and  sculpture. 
We  must  not  dream  of  comparing  it  with  our  own,  or 
even  with  that  of  the  Greeks  ; but  if  we  take  it  simply  for 
what  it  is,  accepting  it  in  the  secondary  place  assigned 
to  it,  we  cannot  fail  to  recognise  its  unusual  merits. 
Egyptian  painting  excelled  in  the  sense  of  monumental 
decoration,  and  if  we  ever  revert  to  the  fashion  of 
colouring  the  facades  of  our  houses  and  our  public 
edifices,  we  shall  lose  nothing  by  studying  Egyptian 
methods  or  reproducing  Egyptian  processes. 


WORKS  OF  PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 

To  this  day,  the  most  ancient  statue  known  is  a 
colossus — namely,  the  Great  Sphinx  of  Gizeh.  It  was 
already  in  existence  in  the  time  of  Khoofoo  (Cheops), 
and  perhaps  we  should  not  be  far  wrong  if  we  ventured 
to  ascribe  it  to  the  generations  before  Mena,  called 


2 02  EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 

in  the  priestly  chronicles  “the  Servants  of  Horus.” 
Hewn  in  the  living  rock  at  the  extreme  verge  of  the 


Fig.  179. 

Libyan  plateau,  it  seems,  as  the  representative  of 
Horus,  to  uprear  its  head  in  order  to  be  the  first  to 


TAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  20 3 

catch  sight  of  his  father,  Ra,  the  rising  sun,  across 
the  valley  (fig.  179).  For  centuries  the  sands  have 
buried  it  to  the  chin,  yet  without  protecting  it  from 
ruin.  Its  battered  body  preserves  but  the  general 
form  of  a lion’s  body.  The  paws  and  breast,  restored 
by  the  Ptolemies  and  the  Caesars,  retain  but  a part  of 
the  stone  facing  with  which  they  were  then  clothed  in 
order  to  mask  the  ravages  of  time.  The  lower  part  of 
the  head-dress  has  fallen,  and  the  diminished  neck 
looks  too  slender  to  sustain  the  enormous  weight  of 
the  head.  The  nose  and  beard  have  been  broken  off 
by  fanatics,  and  the  red  hue  which  formerly  enlivened 
the  features  is  almost  wholly  effaced.  And  yet,  not- 
withstanding its  fallen  fortunes,  the  monster  preserves 
an  expression  of  sovereign  strength  and  greatness. 
The  eyes  gaze  out  afar  with  a look  of  intense  and 
profound  thoughtfulness ; the  mouth  still  wears  a 
smile  ; the  whole  countenance  is  informed  with  power 
and  repose.  The  art  which  conceived  and  carved  this 
prodigious  statue  was  a finished  art ; an  art  which  had 
attained  self-mastery,  and  was  sure  of  its  effects.  How 
many  centuries  had  it  taken  to  arrive  at  this  degree  of 
maturity  and  perfection  ? In  certain  pieces  belonging 
to  various  museums,  such  as  the  statues  of  Sepa  and 
his  wife  at  the  Louvre,  and  the  bas-reliefs  of  the  tomb 
of  Khabiousokari  at  Boulak,  critics  have  mistakenly 
recognised  the  faltering  first  efforts  of  an  unskilled 
people.  The  stiffness  of  attitude  and  gesture,  the 
exaggerated  squareness  of  the  shoulders,  the  line  of 
green  paint  daubed  under  the  eyes, — in  a word,  all 
those  characteristics  which  are  quoted  as  signs  of 
extreme  antiquity,  are  found  in  certain  monuments  of 


204 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


the  Fifth  and  Sixth  Dynasties.  The  contemporary 
sculptors  of  any  given  period  were  not  all  equally 
skilful.  If  some  were  capable  of  doing  good  work,  the 
greater  number  were  mere  craftsmen  ; and  we  must  be 
careful  not  to  ascribe  awkward  manipulation,  or  lack  of 
teaching,  to  the  timidity  of  archaism.  The  works  of 
the  primitive  dynasties  yet  sleep  undiscovered  beneath 
seventy  feet  of  sand  at  the  foot  of  the  Sphinx ; those 
of  the  historic  dynasties  are  daily  exhumed  from  the 
depths  of  the  neighbouring  tombs.  These  have  not 
yielded  Egyptian  art  as  a whole ; but  they  have 
familiarised  us  with  one  of  its  schools — the  school 
of  Memphis.  The  Delta,  Hermopolis,  Abydos,  the  en- 
virons of  Thebes  and  Assouan,*  do  not  appear  upon 
the  stage  earlier  than  towards  the  Sixth  Dynasty ; 
and  even  so,  we  know  them  through  but  a small 
number  of  sepulchres  long  since  violated  and  despoiled. 
The  loss  is  probably  not  very  great.  Memphis  was 
the  capital ; and  thither  the  presence  of  the  Pharaohs 
must  have  attracted  all  the  talent  of  the  vassal  princi- 
palities. Judging  from  the  results  of  our  excavations 
in  the  Memphite  necropolis  alone,  it  is  possible  to 
determine  the  characteristics  of  both  sculpture  and 
painting  in  the  time  of  Seneferoo  and  his  successors 
with  as  much  exactness  as  if  we  were  already  in 


* The  classic  Syene,  from  all  time  the  southernmost  portion  of 
Egypt  proper.  The  Sixth  Dynasty  is  called  of  “ Elephantine,”  the 
kings  of  that  line  being  descended  from  a family  of  Elephantine, 
the  island  immediately  facing  Syene,  which  was  the  traditional  seat 
of  the  Dynasty,  and  on  which  the  temples  stood.  The  cemetery  of 
Elephantine  has  recently  been  discovered  by  General  Sir  T.  Grenfell, 
K.C.B.,  in  the  neighbouring  cliffs  of  the  Libyan  Desert  : see  foot- 
note, p.  144.  [Translator’s  note.] 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


205 


possession  of  all  the  monuments  which  the  valley  of 
the  Nile  yet  holds  in  reserve  for  future  explorers. 

The  lesser  folk  of  the  art-world  excelled  in  the 
manipulation  of  brush  and  chisel,  and  that  their  skill 
was  of  a high  order  is  testified  by  the  thousands  of 
tableaux  they  have  left  behind  them.  The  relief  is 
low  ; the  colour  sober ; the  com- 
position learned.  Architecture, 
trees,  vegetation,  irregularities 
of  ground,  are  summarily  in- 
dicated, and  are  introduced  only 
when  necessary  to  the  due  in- 
terpretation of  the  scene  repre- 
sented. Men  and  animals,  on 
the  other  hand,  are  rendered 
with  a wealth  of  detail,  a truth 
of  character,  and  sometimes  a 
force  of  treatment,  to  which 
the  later  schools  of  Egyptian 
art  rarely  attained.  Six  wooden 
panels  from  the  tomb  of  Hosi 
in  the  Boulak  Museum  repre- 
sent perhaps  the  finest  known 
specimens  of  this  branch  of  art. 

Mariette  ascribed  them  to  the 
Third  Dynasty,  and  he  may  perhaps  have  been  right ; 
though  for  my  own  part  I incline  to  date  them  from  the 
Fifth  Dynasty.  In  these  panels  there  is  nothing  that 
can  be  called  a “ subject.”  Hosi  either  sits  or  stands 
(fig.  180),  and  has  four  or  five  columns  of  hiero- 
glyphs above  his  head  ; but  the  firmness  of  line,  the 
subtlety  of  modelling,  the  ease  of  execution,  are 


20  6 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


unequalled.  Never  has  wood  been  cut  with  a more 
delicate  chisel  or  a firmer  hand. 

The  variety  of  attitude  and  gesture  which  we  so 
much  admire  in  the  Egyptian  bas-relief  is  lacking  to 
the  statues.  A mourner  weeping,  a woman  bruising 
corn  for  bread,  a baker  rolling  dough,  are  subjects  as 
rare  in  the  round  as  they  are  common  in  bas-relief. 
In  sculpture,  the  figure  is  generally  represented  either 
standing  with  the  feet  side  by  side  and  quite  still,  or 
with  one  leg  advanced  in  the  act  of  walking ; or  seated 
upon  a chair  or  a cube ; or  kneeling ; or,  still  more 
frequently,  sitting  on  the  ground  cross-legged,  as  the 
Fellaheen  are  wont  to  sit  to  this  day.  This  intentional 
monotony  of  style  would  be  inexplicable  if  we  were 
ignorant  of  the  purpose  for  which  such  statues  were 
intended.  They  represent  the  dead  man  for  whom  the 
tomb  was  made,  his  family,  his  servants,  his  slaves, 
and  his  kinsfolk.  The  master  is  always  shown  sitting 
or  standing,  and  he  could  not  consistently  be  seen  in 
any  other  attitude.  The  tomb  is,  in  fact,  the  house  in 
which  he  rests  after  the  labours  of  life,  as  once  he  used 
to  rest  in  his  earthly  home  ; and  the  scenes  depicted 
upon  the  walls  represent  the  work  which  he  was 
officially  credited  with  performing.  Here  he  superin- 
tends the  preliminary  operations  necessary  to  raise  the 
food  by  which  he  is  to  be  nourished  in  the  form  of 
funerary  offerings ; namely,  seed-sowing,  harvesting, 
stock-breeding,  fishing,  hunting,  and  the  like.  In 
short,  “ he  superintends  all  the  labour  which  is  done 
for  the  eternal  dwelling.”  When  thus  engaged,  he  is 
always  standing  upright,  his  head  uplifted,  his  hands 
pendent,  or  holding  the  staff  and  baton  of  command. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


207 


Elsewhere,  the  diverse  offerings  are  brought  to  him  one 
by  one,  and  then  he  sits  in  a chair  of  state.  These  are 
his  two  attitudes,  whether  as  a bas-relief  subject  or  a 
statue.  Standing,  he  receives  the  homage  of  his  vassals; 
sitting,  he  partakes  of  the  family  repast.  The  people 
of  his  household  comport  themselves  before  him  as 
becomes  their  business  and  station.  His  wife  either 
stands  beside  him,  sits  on  the  same  chair  or  on  a second 
chair  by  his  side,  or  squats  beside  his  feet  as  during 
his  lifetime.  His  son,  if  a child  at  the  time  when 
the  statue  was  ordered,  is  represented  in  the  garb  of 
infancy  ; or  with  the  bearing  and  equipment  proper  to 
his  position,  if  a man.  The  slaves  bruise  the  corn,  the 
cellarers  tar  the  wine  jars,  the  hired  mourners  wreep 
and  tear  their  hair.  His  little  social  world  followed  the 
Egyptian  to  his  tomb,  the  duties  of  his  attendants  being 
prescribed  for  them  after  death,  just  as  they  had  been  pre- 
scribed for  them  during  life.  And  the  kind  of  influence 
which  the  religious  conception  of  the  soul  exercised  over 
the  art  of  the  sculptor  did  not  end  here.  From  the 
moment  that  the  statue  is  regarded  as  the  support  of 
the  Double,  it  becomes  a condition  of  primary  import- 
ance that  the  statue  shall  reproduce,  at  least  in  the 
abstract,  the  proportions  and  distinctive  peculiarities  of 
the  corporeal  body  ; and  this  in  order  that  the  Double 
shall  more  easily  adapt  himself  to  his  new  body  of 
stone  or  wood.*  The  head  is  therefore  always  a 
faithful  portrait ; but  the  body,  on  the  contrary,  is,  as 
it  were,  a medium  kind  of  body,  representing  the  original 
at  his  highest  development,  and  consequently  able  to 

* For  an  explanation  of  the  nature  of  the  Double,  see  Chapter  III. 
pp.  108,  1 1 7,  and  12 1.  [Translator’s  note.] 


208 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


exert  the  fulness  of  his  physical  powers  when  admitted 
to  the  society  of  the  gods.  Hence  men  are  always 
sculptured  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  women  with  the 
delicate  proportions  of  early  womanhood.  This  con- 
ventional ideal  was  never  departed  from,  unless  in  cases 
of  very  marked  deformity.  The  statue  of  a dwarf 
reproduced  all  the  ugly  peculiarities  of  the  dwarf’s  own 
body ; and  it  was  important  that  it  should  so  reproduce 
them.  If  a statue  of  the  ordinary  type  had  been  placed 
in  the  tomb  of  the  dead  man,  his  “ Ka,”  accustomed 
during  life  to  the  deformity  of  his  limbs,  would  not  be 
able  to  adapt  itself  to  an  upright  and  shapely  figure, 
and  would  therefore  be  deprived  of  the  conditions 
necessary  to  his  future  well-being.  The  artist  was 
free  to  vary  the  details  and  arrange  the  accessories 
according  to  his  fancy ; but  without  missing  the  point 
of  his  work,  he  could  not  change  the  attitude,  or  depart 
from  the  general  style  of  the  conventional  portrait 
statue.  This  persistent  monotony  of  pose  and  subject 
produces  a depressing  effect  upon  the  spectator, — an 
effect  which  is  augmented  by  the  obtrusive  character 
given  to  the  supports.  These  statues  are  mostly  backed 
by  a sort  of  rectangular  pediment,  which  is  either 
squared  off  just  at  the  base  of  the  skull,  or  carried  up 
in  a point  and  lost  in  the  head-dress,  or  rounded  at  the 
top  and  showing  above  the  head  of  the  figure.  The 
arms  are  seldom  separated  from  the  body,  but  are 
generally  in  one  piece  with  the  sides  and  hips.  The 
whole  length  of  the  leg  which  is  placed  in  advance 
of  the  other  is  very  often  connected  with  the  pediment 
by  a band  of  stone.  It  has  been  conjectured  that 
this  course  was  imposed  upon  the  sculptor  by  reason 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


209 


of  the  imperfection  of  his  tools,  and  the  consequent 
danger  of  fracturing  the  statue  when  cutting  away  the 
superfluous  material — an  explanation  which  may  be 
correct  as  regards  the  earliest  schools,  but  which  does 
not  hold  good  for  the  time  of  the  Fourth  Dynasty. 
We  could  point  to  more  than  one  piece  of  sculpture 
of  that  period,  even  in  granite,  in  which  all  the  limbs 
are  free,  having  been  cut  away  by  means  of  either  the 
chisel  or  the  drill.  If  pediment  supports  were  per- 
sisted in  to  the  end,  their  use  must  have  been  due,  not 
to  helplessness,  but  to  routine,  or  to  an  exaggerated 
respect  for  ancient  method. 

Most  museums  are  poor  in  statues  of  the  Memphite 
school.  Among  much  that  is  mediocre,  France  and 
Egypt  possess,  however,  some  twenty  specimens  which 
suffice  to  ensure  it  an  honourable  place  in  the  history 
of  art.  At  the  Louvre  we  have  the  “ Cross-legged 
Scribe,”  * and  the  statues  of  Skemka  and  Pahur- 
nefer  ; at  Boulak  there  are  the  “ Sheykh-el-Beledf  and 
his  wife,  Khafra,*  Ranefer,  and  the  “Kneeling  Scribe.’’ 
The  original  of  the  “ Cross-legged  Scribe  ” was  not  a 
handsome  man  (fig.  1 8 1 ),  but  the  vigour  and  fidelity" 
of  his  portrait  amply  compensate  for  the  absence  of 
ideal  beauty.  His  legs  are  crossed  and  laid  flat  to 
the  ground  in  one  of  those  attitudes  common  among 


* Known  as  the  “ Scribe  accroupi,”  literally  the  “ Squatting 
Scribe  ” ; but  in  English,  squatting,  as  applied  to  Egyptian  art,  is 
taken  to  mean  the  attitude  of  sitting  with  the  knees  nearly  touching 
the  chin. 

j “ The  Sheykh  of  the  Village.’’  This  statue  is  best  known  in 
England  as  the  “ Wooden  Man  of  Boulak.” 

J Khafra,  sometimes  written  Shafra  : the  Greek  Chephren. 

[Translator's  note.] 


H 


2 10 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Orientals,  yet  all  but  impossible  to  Europeans.  The 
bust  is  upright,  and  well  balanced  upon  the  hips.  The 
head  is  uplifted.  The  right  hand  holds  the  reed  pen, 
which  pauses  in  its  place  on  the  open  papyrus  scroll. 


Fig.  181. 

Thus,  for  six  thousand  years  he  has  waited  for  his 
master  to  go  on  with  the  long-interrupted  dictation. 
The  face  is  square-cut,  and  the  strongly-marked  features 
indicate  a man  in  the  prime  of  life.  The  mouth,  wide 
and  thin-lipped,  rises  slightly  towards  the  corners, 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


2 I I 


which  are  lost  in  the  projecting  muscles  by  which  it 
is  framed  in.  The  cheeks  are  bony  and  lank  ; the  ears 
are  thick  and  heavy,  and  stand  out  well  from  the  head  ; 
the  thick,  coarse  hair  is  cut  close  above  the  brow. 
The  eyes,  which  are  large  and  well  open,  owe  their 
lifelike  vivacity  to  an  ingenious  contrivance  of  the 
ancient  artist.  The  orbit  has  been  cut  out  from  the 
stone,  the  hollow  being  filled  with  an  eye  composed  of 
enamel,  white  and  black.  The  edges  of  the  eyelids  are 
of  bronze,  and  a small  silver  nail  inserted  behind  the 
iris  receives  and  reflects  the  light  in  such  wise  as  to 
imitate  the  light  of  life.  The  contours  of  the  flesh  are 
somewhat  full  and  wanting  in  firmness,  as  would  be 
the  case  in  middle  life,  if  the  man’s  occupation  debarred 
him  from  active  exercise.  The  forms  of  the  arm  and 
back  are  in  good  relief ; the  hands  are  hard  and  bony, 
with  fingers  of  somewhat  unusual  length  ; and  the  knees 
are  sculptured  with  a minute  attention  to  anatomical 
details.  The  whole  body  is,  as  it  were,  informed  by 
the  expression  of  the  face,  and  is  dominated  by  the 
attentive  suspense  which  breathes  in  every  feature.  The 
muscles  of  the  arm,  of  the  bust,  and  of  the  shoulder 
are  caught  in  half  repose,  and  are  ready  to  return  at 
once  to  work.  This  careful  observance  of  the  pro- 
fessional attitude,  or  the  characteristic  gesture,  is 
equally  marked  in  all  the  statues  which  I have  had 
an  opportunity  of  studying. 

Khafra  is  a king  (fig.  182).  He  sits  squarely  upon 
his  chair  of  state,  his  hands  upon  his  knees,  his  chest 
thrown  forward,  his  head  erect,  his  gaze  confident. 
Had  the  emblems  of  his  rank  been  destroyed,  and  the 
inscription  effaced  which  tells  his  name,  his  bearing 


2 I 2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


alone  would  have  revealed  the  Pharaoh.  Every  trait  is 
characteristic  of  the  man  who  from  childhood  upwards 
has  known  himself  to  be  invested  with  sovereign 
authority.  Ranefer  belonged  to  one  of  the  great  feudal 
families  of  his  time.  He  stands  upright,  his  arms 
down,  his  left  leg  forward,  in  the  attitude  of  a prince 


inspecting  a march-past  of  his  vassals.  The  coun- 
tenance is  haughty,  the  attitude  bold ; but  Ranefer 
does  not  impress  us  with  the  almost  superhuman  calm 
and  decision  of  Khafra.  Turning  to  the  “ Sheykh-el- 
Beled”  (fig.  183),  we  descend  several  degrees  in  the 
social  scale.  Ra-em-ka  was  a “ superintendent  of 
works,”  which  probably  means  that  he  was  an  overseer 


Fig.  183. 


Fig.  1S2. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


213 


of  corvee  labour  at  the  time  of  building  the  great 
pyramids.  He  belonged  to  the  middle  class ; and  his 
whole  person  expresses  vulgar  contentment  and  self- 
satisfaction.  We  seem  to  see  him  in  the  act  of  watch- 
inghis  workmen,  his  staff  of  acacia  wood  in  his  hand.  The 
feet  of  the  statue  had  perished,  but  have  been  restored. 
The  body  is  stout  and  heavy,  and  the  neck  thick.  The 
head  (fig.  184),  despite  its  vulgarity,  does  not  lack 


Fig.  1S4. 


energy.  The  eyes  are  inserted,  like  those  of  the 
“ Cross-legged  Scribe.”  By  a curious  coincidence,  the 
statue,  which  was  found  at  Sakkarah,  happened  to  be 
strikingly  like  the  local  Sheykh-el-Beled,  or  head-man, 
of  the  village.  Always  quick  to  seize  upon  the  amusing 
side  of  an  incident,  the  Arab  diggers  at  once  called  it 
the  “ Sheykh-el-Beled,”  and  it  has  retained  the  name 
ever  since.  The  statue  of  his  wife,  interred  beside  his 
own,  is  unfortunately  mutilated.  It  is  a mere  trunk, 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


2 I 4 


without  legs  or  arms  (fig.  185);  yet  enough  remains 
to  show  that  the  figure  represented  a good  type  of 

the  Egyptian  middle- 
class  matron,  common- 
place in  appearance  and 
somewhat  acid  of  tem- 
per. The  “ Kneeling 
Scribe  ” of  the  Boulak 
collection  (fig.  186)  be- 
longs to  the  lowest 
middle-class  rank,  such 
as  it  is  at  the  present 
day.  Had  he  not  been 
dead  more  than  six 
thousand  years,  I could 
protest  that  I met  him 
face  to  face  six  months 
ago,  in  one  of  the  little 
towns  of  Upper  Egypt. 
He  has  just  brought 
a roll  of  papyrus,  or 
a tablet  covered  with 
writing,  for  his  master’s 
approval.  Kneeling  in 
the  prescribed  attitude 
of  an  inferior,  his  hands 
crossed,  his  shoulders 
rounded,  his  head 
slightly  bent  forward, 
he  waits  till  the  great  man  shall  have  read  it 
through.  Of  what  is  he  thinking  ? A scribe  might 
feel  some  not  unreasonable  apprehensions,  when  sum- 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


215 


moned  thus  into  the  presence  of  his  superior.  The 
stick  played  a prominent  part  in  official  life,  and  an 
error  of  addition,  a 
fault  in  orthography, 
or  an  order  mis- 
understood, would 
be  enough  to  bring 
down  a shower  of 
blows.  The  sculptor 
has,  with  inimitable 
skill,  seized  that 
expression  of  re- 
signed uncertainty 
and  passive  gentle- 
ness which  is  the 
result  of  a whole 
life  of  servitude. 

There  is  a smile 
upon  his  lips,  but 
it  is  the  smile  of 
etiquette,  in  which 
there  is  no  glad- 
ness. The  nose  and 
cheeks  are  puckered 
up  in  harmony  with 
the  forced  grimace 
upon  the  mouth. 

His  large  eyes 
(again  in  enamel) 
have  the  fixed  look  of  one  who  waits  vacantly,  without 
making  any  effort  to  concentrate  his  sight  or  his 
thoughts  upon  a definite  object.  The  face  lacks  both 


2X6 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


intelligence  and  vivacity  ; but  his  work,  after  all,  called 
for  no  special  nimbleness  of  wit.  Khafra  is  in  diorite  ; 
Ra-em-ka  and  his  wife  are  carved  in  wood  ; the  other 
statues  named  are  of  limestone  ; yet,  whatever  the 
material  employed,  the  play  of  the  chisel  is  alike  free, 
subtle,  and  delicate.  The  head  of  the  scribe  and  the 


Fig.  187. 


bas-relief  portrait  of  Pharaoh  Menkauhor,  in  the 
Louvre,  the  dwarf  Khnumhotep,  and  the  slaves  who 
prepare  food-offerings  at  Boulak,  are  in  no  wise 
inferior  to  the  “ Cross-legged  Scribe”  or  the  “Sheykh- 
el-Beled.”  The  baker  kneading  his  dough  (fig.  187) 
is  thoroughly  in  his  work.  His  half-stooping  attitude, 
and  the  way  in  which  he  leans  upon  the  kneading- 
trough,  are  admirably  natural.  The  dwarf  has  a 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


217 


big,  elongated  head,  balanced  by  two  enormous  ears 
(fig.  188).  He  has  a foolish  face,  an  ill-shapen 
mouth,  and  narrow  slits  of  eyes,  inclining  upwards 


Fig.  1S8. 


to  the  temples.  The  bust  is  well  developed,  but 
the  trunk  is  out  of  proportion  with  the  rest  of  his 
person.  The  artist  has  done  his  best  to  disguise  the 
lower  limbs  under  a fine  white  tunic  ; but  one  feels 
that  it  is  too  long  for  the  little  man’s  arms  and  legs. 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


2 I 8 

The  thighs  could  have  existed  only  in  a rudimentary 
form,  and  Khnumhotep,  standing  as  best  he  can  upon 
his  misshapen  feet,  seems  to  be  off  his  balance,  and 
ready  to  fall  forward  upon  his  face.  It  would  be 
difficult  to  find  another  work  of  art  in  which  the 
characteristics  of  dwarfdom  are  more  cleverly  re- 
produced. 


Fig.  189. 


The  sculpture  of  the  first  Theban  empire  is  in  close 
connection  with  that  of  Memphis.  Methods,  materials, 
design,  composition,  all  are  borrowed  from  the  elder 
school ; the  only  new  departure  being  in  the  proportions 
assigned  to  the  human  figure.  From  the  time  of  the 
Eleventh  Dynasty,  the  legs  become  longer  and  slighter, 
the  hips  smaller,  the  body  and  the  neck  more  slender. 
Works  of  this  period  are  not  to  be  compared  with 
the  best  productions  of  the  earlier  centuries.  The 
wall-paintings  of  Siout,  of  Bersheh,  of  Beni-Hassan, 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


219 

of  Meydoom,  of  Assouan,  are  not  equal  to  those  in  the 
mastabas  of  Sakkarah  and  Gizeh  ; nor  are  the  most 
carefully-executed  contemporary  statues  worthy  of  a 
place  beside  the  “ Sheykh-el-Beled  ” or  the  “Cross- 
legged  Scribe."  Two,  however,  are  very  well  done ; 
namely,  General  Rahotep  and  his  wife,  Nefert.* 


Fig.  190. 

Rahotep  (fig.  189),  despite  his  high  military  rank,  was 
of  inferior  birth.  Stalwart  and  square-cut,  he  has 
somewhat  of  the  rustic  in  his  physiognomy.  Nefert, 
on  the  contrary  (fig.  190),  was  a princess  of  the  blood 

* These  statues  have  hitherto  been  attributed  to  the  Third 
Dynasty.  I venture  to  think  that  the  heads  of  Rahotep  and  Nefert, 
engraved  from  a brilliant  photograph  in  A Thousand  Miles  tip  the 
Nile,  give  a truer  and  more  spirited  idea  of  the  originals  than  the 
present  illustrations.  [Translator’s  note.] 


2 20 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


royal  ; and  her  whole  person  is,  as  it  were,  informed 
with  a certain  air  of  resolution  and  command,  which 
the  sculptor  has  expressed  very  happily.  She  wears  a 
close-fitting  garment,  opening  to  a point  in  front.  The 
shoulders,  bosom,  and  bodily  contours  are  modelled 
under  the  drapery  with  a grace  and  reserve  which  it 
is  impossible  to  praise  too  highly.  Her  face,  round 
and  plump,  is  framed  in  masses  of  fine  black  hair, 
confined  by  a richly-ornamented  bandeau.  This 
wedded  pair  are  in  limestone,  painted  ; the  husband 
being  coloured  of  a reddish  brown  hue,  and  the  wife  of 
a tawny  buff.  Such  other  portrait  statues  of  private 
persons  as  I have  seen,  especially  those  found  at 
Thebes,  are  decidedly  bad,  the  execution  being  rude 
and  the  expression  vulgar.  The  royal  statues  of  this 
period,  which  are  nearly  all  in  black  or  grey  granite, 
have  been  for  the  most  part  usurped  by  kings  of  later 
date.  Usertesen  III.,  whose  head  and  feet  are  in  the 
Louvre,  was  appropriated  by  Amenhotep  III.,  as  the 
sphinx  of  the  Louvre  and  the  colossi  of  Boulak  were 
appropriated  by  Rameses  II.  Many  museums  possess 
specimens  of  supposed  Ramesside  Pharaohs  which, 
upon  more  careful  inspection,  we  are  compelled  to 
ascribe  to  the  Thirteenth  or  Fourteenth  Dynasties. 
Those  of  undisputed  identity,  such  as  the  Sebek- 
hotep  III.  of  the  Louvre,  the  Mermashiu  of  Tanis, 
the  Sebekemsaf  of  Boulak,  and  the  colossi  of  the  Isle 
of  Argo,  though  very  skilfully  executed,  are  wanting  in 
originality  and  vigour.  One  would  say,  indeed,  that 
the  sculptors  had  purposely  endeavoured  to  turn  them 
all  out  after  the  one  smiling  and  commonplace  pattern. 
Great  is  the  contrast  when  we  turn  from  these  giant 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


2 2 1 


dolls  to  the  black  granite  sphinxes  discovered  by 
Mariette  at  Tanis  in  1 86 1 , and  by  him  ascribed  to 
the  Hyksos  period.  Here  energy,  at  all  events,  is  not 
lacking.  Wiry  and  compact,  the  lion  body  is  shorter 
than  in  sphinxes  of  the  usual  type.  The  head,  instead 
of  wearing  the  customary  “ klaft,”  or  head-gear  of 


Fig.  19 1. 


folded  linen,  is  clothed  with  an  ample  mane,  which  also 
surrounds  the  face.  The  eyes  are  small  ; the  nose  is 
aquiline  and  depressed  at  the  tip  ; the  cheekbones  are 
prominent ; the  lower  lip  slightly  protrudes.  The 
general  effect  of  the  face  is,  in  short,  so  unlike  the 
types  we  are  accustomed  to  find  in  Egypt,  that  it  has 
been  accepted  in  proof  of  an  Asiatic  origin  (fig.  1 9 1 ). 
These  sphinxes  are  unquestionably  anterior  to  the 


2 2 2 EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

Eighteenth  Dynasty,  because  one  of  the  kings  of 
Avaris,  named  Apepi,  has  cut  his  name  upon  the 
shoulder  of  each.  Arguing  from  this  fact,  it  has, 
however,  been  too  hastily  concluded  that  they  are 
works  of  the  time  of  that  prince.  On  a closer  ex- 
amination, one  can  see  that  they  had  already  been 
dedicated  to  some  Pharaoh  of  a yet  earlier  period, 
and  that  Apepi  had  merely  usurped  them.  There  is 
nothing  to  indicate  that  this  unknown  Pharaoh  reigned 
subsequently  to  the  Asiatic  invasion.  His  monuments 
may,  perchance,  be  the  products  of  a local  school,  the 
origin  of  which  may  have  been  independent,  and  its 
traditions  quite  different  from  the  traditions  of  the 
Memphite  workshops.  Except  at  Abydos,  El-Kab, 
Assouan,  and  some  two  or  three  other  places,  the 
provincial  art  of  ancient  Egypt  is  so  little  known  to 
us,  that  I dare  not  lay  too  much  stress  upon  this 
hypothesis.  Whatever  the  origin  of  the  Tanite  School, 
it  continued  to  exist  long  after  the  expulsion  of  the 
Hyksos  invaders,  since  one  of  its  best  examples,  a 
group  representing  the  Nile  of  the  North  and  the  Nile 
of  the  South,  bearing  trays  laden  with  flowers  and  fish, 
was  consecrated  by  Pisebkhanu  of  the  Twenty-first 
Dynasty. 

The  first  three  dynasties  of  the  New  Empire  * have 
bequeathed  us  more  monuments  than  all  the  others 
put  together.  Painted  bas-reliefs,  statues  of  kings  and 
private  persons,  colossi,  sphinxes,  may  be  counted  by 
hundreds  between  the  mouths  of  the  Nile  and  the 
fourth  cataract.  The  old  sacerdotal  cities,  Memphis, 

* By  the  New  Empire,  the  Eighteenth,  Nineteenth,  and  Twentieth 
Dynasties  are  meant.  [Translator’s  note.] 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE.  223 

Thebes,  Abydos,  are  naturally  the  richest ; but  so  great 
was  the  impetus  given  to  art,  that  even  remote  pro- 
vincial towns,  such  as  Aboo  Simbel,  Redeseeyeh,  and 
Mesheykh,  have  their  chef s-d' oeuvre,  like  the  great  cities. 
The  official  portraits  of  Amenhotep  I.  at  Turin,  of 
Thothmes  I.  and  Thothmes  III.  at  the  British  Museum, 
at  Karnak,  at  Turin,  and  at  Boulak,  are  conceived  in  the 
style  of  the  Twelfth  and  Thirteenth  Dynasties,  and  are 
deficient  in  originality ; but  the  bas-reliefs  in  temples 
and  tombs  show  a marked  advance  upon  those  of  the 
earlier  ages.  The  modelling  is  finer  ; the  figures  are 
more  numerous  and  better  grouped  ; the  relief  is  higher ; 
the  effects  of  perspective  are  more  carefully  worked 
out.  The  wall-subjects  of  Dayr-el-Baharee,  the  tableaux 
in  the  tombs  of  Hui,  of  Rekhmara,  of  Anna,  of  Khamha, 
and  of  twenty  more  at  Thebes,  are  surprisingly  rich, 
brilliant,  and  varied.  Awaking  to  a sense  of  the 
picturesque,  artists  introduced  into  their  compositions 
all  those  details  of  architecture,  of  uneven  ground,  of 
foreign  plants,  and  the  like,  which  formerly  they  neg- 
lected, or  barely  indicated.  The  taste  for  the  colossal, 
which  had  fallen  somewhat  into  abeyance  since  the  time 
of  the  Great  Sphinx,  came  once  again  to  the  surface,  and 
was  developed  anew.  Amenhotep  III.  was  not  content 
with  statues  of  twenty-five  or  thirty  feet  in  height,  such  as 
were  in  favour  among  his  ancestors.  Those  which  he 
erected  in  advance  of  his  memorial  chapel  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Nile  in  Western  Thebes,  one  of  which  is  the 
Vocal  Memnon  of  the  classic  writers,  sit  fifty  feet  high. 
Each  was  carved  from  a single  block  of  granite,  and  they 
are  as  elaborately  finished  as  though  they  were  of  ordi- 
nary size.  The  avenues  of  sphinxes  which  this  Pharaoh 


224 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


marshalled  before  the  temples  of  Luxor  and  Ivarnak  do 
not  come  to  an  end  at  fifty  or  a hundred  yards  from  the 
gateway,  but  are  prolonged  for  great  distances.  In  one 
avenue,  they  have  the  human  head  upon  the  lion’s  bod}'' ; 
in  another,  they  are  fashioned  in  the  semblance  of 
kneeling  rams.  Khou-en-Aten,  the  revolutionary  suc- 
cessor of  Amenhotep 
III.,  far  from  dis- 
couraging this  move- 
ment, did  what  he 
could  to  promote  it. 
N ever,  perhaps,  were 
Egyptian  sculptors 
more  unrestricted 
than  by  him  at  Tell- 
el-Amarna.  Re- 
views of  military, 
chariot  - driving, 
popular  festivals, 
state  receptions,  the 
distribution  of 
honours  and  re- 
wards by  the  king 
in  person,  repre- 
sentations of  palaces,  villas,  and  gardens,  were  among 
the  subjects  which  they  were  permitted  to  treat ; and 
these  subjects  differed  in  so  many  respects  from  tra- 
ditional routine  that  they  could  give  free  play  to  their 
fancy  and  to  their  natural  genius.  The  spirit  and 
gusto  with  which  they  took  advantage  of  their  opportuni- 
ties would  scarcely  be  believed  by  one  who  had  not  seen 
their  works  at  Tell-el-Amarna.  Some  of  their  bas- 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


225 


reliets  are  designed  in  almost  correct  perspective  ; and  in 
all,  the  life  and  stir  of  large  crowds  are  rendered  with 
irreproachable  truth.  The  political  and  religious  re- 
action which  fol- 
lowed this  reign 
arrested  the  evolu- 
tion of  art,  and  con- 
demned sculptors 
and  painters  to 
return  to  the  ob- 
servance of  tradi- 
tional rules.  Their 
personal  influence 
and  their  teaching 
continued,  however, 
to  make  themselves 
felt  under  Horem- 
heb,  under  Seti  I., 
and  even  under 
Rameses  II.  If, 
during  more  than  a 
century,  Egyptian 
art  remained  free, 
graceful,  and  refined, 
that  improvement 
was  due  to  the 
school  of  Tell-el- 
Amarna.  In  no  instance  perhaps  did  it  produce  work 
more  perfect  than  the  bas-reliefs  of  the  Temple  of 
Abydos,  or  those  of  the  tomb  of  Seti  I.  The  head  of 
the  conqueror  (fig.  192),  always  studied  con  amove , is  a 
marvel  of  reserved  and  sensitive  grace.  Rameses  II. 

15 


Fig.  193. 


226 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


charging  the  enemy  at  Aboo  Simbel  is  as  fine  as  the 
portraits  of  Seti  I.,  though  in  another  style.  The 
action  of  the  arm  which  brandishes  the  lance  is  some- 
what angular,  but  the  expression  of  strength  and 
triumph  which  animates  the  whole  person  of  the 
warrior  king,  and  the  despairing  resignation  of  the 
vanquished,  compensate  for  this  one  defect.  The  group 
of  Horemheb  and  the  god  Amen  (fig.  193),  in  the 

Museum  of  Turin,  is  a 
little  dry  in  treatment.  The 
faces  of  both  god  and  king 
lack  expression,  and  their 
bodies  are  heavy  and  ill- 
balanced.  The  fine  colossi 
in  red  granite  which 
Horemheb  placed  against 
the  uprights  of  the  inner 
door  of  his  first  pylon  at 
Karnak,  the  bas-reliefs  on 
the  walls  of  his  speos  at 
Silsilis,  his  own  portrait 
and  that  of  one  of  the 
ladies  of  his  family  now 
in  the  museum  of  Boulak,  are,  so  to  say,  spotless 
and  faultless.  The  queen’s  face  (fig.  194)  is  animated 
and  intelligent ; the  eyes  are  large  and  prominent ; 
the  mouth  is  wide,  but  well  shaped.  This  head  is 
carved  in  hard  limestone  of  a creamy  tint  which 
seems  to  soften  the  somewhat  satirical  expression  of 
her  eyes  and  smile.  The  king  (fig.  195)  is  in  black 
granite  ; and  the  sombre  hue  of  the  stone  at  once  pro- 
duces a mournful  impression  upon  the  spectator.  His 


Fig.  194. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


227 


youthful  face  is  pervaded  by  an  air  of  melancholy,  such 
as  we  rarely  see  depicted  in  portraits  of  Pharaohs  of 
the  great  period. 

The  nose  is 
straight  and  deli- 
cate, the  eyes  are 
long,  the  lips  are  ■ 
large,  full,  some- 
what contracted 
at  the  corners, 
and  strongly  de- 
fined at  the 
edges.  The  chin 
is  overweighted 
by  the  traditional 
false  beard. 

Every  detail  is 
treated  with  as 
much  skill  as  if 
the  sculptor  were 
dealing  with  a 
soft  stone  instead 
of  with  a material 
which  resisted 
the  chisel.  Such, 
indeed,  is  the 
mastery  of  the 
execution,  that 

one  forgets  the 

„ . Fig.  195. 

difficulties  of  the 

task  in  the  excellence  of  the  results.  It  is  unfortunate 
that  Egyptian  artists  never  signed  their  works ; for  the 


228 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


sculptor  of  this  portrait  of  Horemheb  deserves  to 
be  remembered.  Like  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty,  the 
Nineteenth  Dynasty  delighted  in  colossi.  Those  of 
Rameses  II.  at  Luxor  measured  from  eighteen  to 
twenty  feet  in  height  (fig.  196);  the  colossal  Rameses  of 
the  Ramesseum  sat  sixty  feet  high;  and  that  of  Tanis 

about  seventy.'-1'- 
The  colossi  of  Aboo 
Simbel,  without 
being  of  quite  such 
formidable  propor- 
tions, face  the  river 
in  imposing  array. 
To  say  that  the 
decline  of  Egyptian 
art  began  with 
Rameses  II.  is  a 
commonplace  of 
contemporary  criti- 
cism ; yet  nothing 
is  less  true  than  an 
axiom  of  this  kind. 
Many  statues  and 
bas-reliefs  executed 
during  his  reign  are  no  doubt  insupposably  rude  and 
ugly  ; but  these  are  chiefly  found  in  provincial  towns 
where  the  schools  were  indifferent,  and  where  the 

* According  to  the  measurements  given  by  Mr.  Petrie,  the  dis- 
coverer of  the  Tanite  colossus  (a  standing  figure),  it  must  have  stood 
ninety  feet  high  without,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high  with, 
its  pedestal.  See  Tanis,  Part  I.,  by  W.  M.  F.  Petrie,  published  by  the 
Egypt  Exploration  Fund,  1885.  [Translator’s  note.] 


Fig.  196. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


229 


artists  had  no  fine  examples  before  them.  At  Thebes, 
at  Memphis,  at  Abydos,  at  Tanis,  in  those  towns  of 
the  Delta  where  the  court  habitually  resided,  and  even 
at  Aboo  Simbel  and  Bayt-el-Waly,  the  sculptors  of 
Rameses  II.  yield  nothing  in  point  of  excellence  to 
those  of  Seti  I.  and  Horemheb.  The  decadence  did  not 
begin  till  after  the  reign  of  Menepthah. 

When  civil  war  and  foreign  invasion 
brought  Egypt  to  the  brink  of  de- 
struction, the  arts,  like  all  else,  suffered 
and  rapidly  declined.  It  is  sad  to 
follow  their  downward  progress  under 
the  later  Ramessides,  whether  in  the 
wall-subjects  of  the  royal  tombs,  or  in 
the  bas-reliefs  of  the  temple  of  Khonsu, 
or  on  the  columns  of  the  hypostyle 
hall  at  Karnak.  Wood  carving  main- 
tained its  level  during  a somewhat 
longer  period.  The  admirable  statu- 
ettes of  priests  and  children  at  Turin 
date  from  the  Twentieth  Dynasty. 

The  advent  of  Shashank  and  the  inter- 
necine strife  of  the  provinces  at  length 
completed  the  ruin  of  Thebes,  and  the 
school  which  had  produced  so  many  masterpieces 
perished  miserably. 

The  Renaissance  did  not  dawn  till  near  the  end  of 
the  Ethiopian  Dynasty,  some  three  hundred  years  later. 
The  over-praised  statue  of  Queen  Ameniritis  * (fig. 

* Ameniritis,  daughter  of  an  Ethiopian  king  named  Kashta,  was  the 
sister  and  successor  of  her  brother  Shabaka,  and  wife  of  Piankhi  II., 
XXVth  Dynasty.  The  statue  is  in  alabaster.  [Translator’s  note.] 


Fig.  197. 


230 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


197)  already  manifests  some  noteworthy  qualities. 
The  limbs,  somewhat  long  and  fragile,  are  delicately 
treated  ; but  the  head  is  heavy,  being  over-weighted 
by  the  wig  peculiar  to  goddesses.  Psammetichus  I., 
when  his  victories  had  established  him  upon  the 
throne,  busied  himself  in  the  restoration  of  the  temples. 

Under  his  auspices,  the 
valley  of  the  Nile  became 
one  vast  studio  of  paint- 
ing and  sculpture.  The 
art  of  engraving  hiero- 
glyphs attained  a high 
degree  of  excellence,  fine 
statues  and  bas-reliefs  were 
everywhere  multiplied,  and 
a new  school  arose.  A 
marvellous  command  of 
material,  a profound  know- 
ledge of  detail,  and  a cer- 
tain elegance  tempered  by 
severity,  are  the  leading 
characteristics  of  this  new 
school.  The  Memphites 
preferred  limestone  ; the 
Thebans  selected  red  or 
grey  granite  ; but  the  Sa'ites  especially  attacked  basalt, 
breccia,  and  serpentine,  and  with  these  fine-grained 
and  almost  homogeneous  substances,  they  achieved 
extraordinary  results.  They  seem  to  have  sought 
difficulties  for  the  mere  pleasure  of  triumphing  over 
them  ; and  we  have  proof  of  the  way  in  which 
artists  of  real  merit  bestowed  years  and  years  on 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


231 


the  chasing  of  sarcophagus  lids  and  the  carving 
of  statues  in  blocks  of  the  hardest  material.  The 
Thoueris,  and  the  four  monuments  from  the  tomb  of 
Psammetichus  * in  the  Boulak  Museum,  are  the  most 
remarkable  objects  hitherto  discovered  in  this  class  of 
work.  Thouerisf  (fig.  198)  was  the  especial  protectress 
of  maternity,  and  presided  over  childbirth.  Her  por- 
trait was  discovered  by  some  native  Sebakh  diggers  1 in 
the  midst  of  the  mounds  of  the  ancient  city  of  Thebes. 
She  was  found  standing  upright  in  a little  chapel  of 
white  limestone  which  had  been  dedicated  to  her  by 
one  Pibesa,  a priest,  in  the  name  of  Queen  Nitocris, 
daughter  of  Psammetichus  I.  This  charming  hippo- 
potamus, whose  figure  is  perhaps  more  plump  than 
graceful,  is  a fine  example  of  difficulties  overcome  ; but 
I do  not  know  that  she  has  any  other  merit.  The  group 
belonging  to  Psammetichus  has  at  all  events  some 
artistic  value.  It  consists  of  four  pieces  of  green 
basalt  ; namely,  a table  of  offerings,  a statue  of  Osiris, 
a statue  of  Nephthys,  and  a Hathor-cow  supporting  a 
statuette  of  the  deceased  (fig.  199).  All  four  are 
somewhat  flaccid,  somewhat  artificial ; but  the  faces  of 

* A Memphite  scribe  of  the  Thirtieth  Dynasty.  [Translator’s 
note.] 

f In  Egyptian  Ta-urt , or  “ the  Great ; ” also  called  A pet.  This 
goddess  is  always  represented  as  a hippopotamus  walking.  She 
carries  in  each  hand  the  emblem  of  protection,  called  “ Sa.”  The 
statuette  of  the  illustration  is  in  green  serpentine.  [Translator's  note.] 

f Sebakh,  signifying  “salt,”  or  “saltpetre,”  is  the  general  term  for 
that  saline  dust  which  accumulates  wherever  there  are  mounds  of 
brick  or  limestone  ruins.  This  dust  is  much  valued  as  a manure,  or 
“ top-dressing,"  and  is  so  constantly  dug  out  and  carried  away  by  the 
natives,  that  the  mounds  of  ancient  towns  and  villages  are  rapidly 
undergoing  destruction  in  all  parts  of  Egypt.  [Translator’s  note.] 


232 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


the  divinities  and  the  deceased  are  not  wanting  in  sweet- 
ness ; the  action  of  the  cow  is  good  ; and  the  little 
figure  under  her  protection  falls  naturally  into  its  place. 
Certain  other  pieces,  less  known  than  these,  are 
however  far  superior.  The  Sa'itic  style  is  easy  of 
recognition.  It  lacks  the  breadth  and  learning  of  the 
first  Memphite  school ; it  also  lacks  the  grand,  and 

sometimes  rude, 
manner  of  the  great 
Theban  school.  The 
proportions  of  the 
human  body  are 
reduced  and  elon- 
gated, and  the 
limbs  lose  in  vigour 
what  they  gain  in 
elegance.  A note- 
worthy change  in 
the  choice  of  atti- 
tudes will  also  be 
remarked.  Orientals 
find  repose  in  pos- 
tures which  would 
be  inexpressibly  fatiguing  to  ourselves.  For  hours  to- 
gether they  will  kneel ; or  sit  tailor-wise,  with  the  legs 
crossed  and  laid  down  flat  to  the  ground  ; or  squat, 
sitting  upon  their  heels,  with  no  other  support  than  is 
afforded  by  that  part  of  the  sole  of  the  foot  which  rests 
upon  the  ground ; or  they  will  sit  upon  the  floor  with 
their  legs  close  together,  and  their  arms  crossed  upon 
their  knees.  These  four  attitudes  were  customary 
among  the  people  from  the  time  of  the  ancient  empire. 


Fig.  199. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


233 


This  we  know  from  the  bas-reliefs.  But  the  Memphite 
sculptors,  deeming  the  two  last  ungraceful,  excluded 
them  from  the  domain  of  art,  and  rarely,  if  ever, 
reproduced  them.  The  “Cross-legged  Scribe”  of  the 
Louvre  and  the  “ Kneel- 
ing Scribe  ” of  Boulak 
show  with  what  success 
they  could  employ  the 
two  first.  The  third  was 
neglected  (doubtless  for 
the  same  reason)  by  the 
Theban  sculptors.  The 
fourth  began  to  be  cur- 
rently adopted  about  the 
time  of  the  Eighteenth 
Dynasty. 

It  may  be  that  this 
position  was  not  in 
fashion  among 
the  moneyed 
classes,  which 
alone  could  af- 
ford to  order 
statues  ; or  it 
may  be  that  the  Fig.  200. 

artists  themselves 

objected  to  an  attitude  which  caused  their  sitters  to 
look  like  square  parcels  with  a human  head  on  the 
top.  The  sculptors  of  the  Sa'ite  period  did  not  inherit 
that  repugnance.  They  have  at  all  events  com- 
bined the  action  of  the  limbs  in  such  wise  as  may 
least  offend  the  eye,  and  the  position  almost  ceases 


234 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


to  be  ungraceful.  The  heads  also  are  modelled  to  such 
perfection  that  they  make  up  for  many  shortcomings. 
That  of  Pedishashi  (fig.  200)  has  an  expression  of 
youth  and  intelligent  gentleness  such  we  seldom  meet 
with  from  an  Egyptian  hand.  Other  heads,  on  the 
contrary,  are  remarkable  for  their  almost  brutal  frank- 
ness of  treatment.  In  the  small  head  of  a scribe  (fig. 
20l),  lately  purchased  for  the  Louvre,  and  in  another 

belonging  to  Prince  Ibra- 
him at  Cairo,  the  wrinkled 
brow,  the  crow’s-feet  at 
the  corners  of  the  eyes, 
the  hard  lines  about  the 
mouth,  and  the  knobs  upon 
the  skull,  are  brought  out 
with  scrupulous  fidelity. 
The  Sa'ite  school  was,  in 
fact,  divided  into  two 
parties.  One  sought  in- 
spiration in  the  past,  and, 
by  a return  to  the  methods 
of  the  old  Memphite  school, 
endeavoured  to  put  fresh  life  into  the  effeminate  style  of 
the  day.  This  it  accomplished,  and  so  successfully,  that 
its  works  are  sometimes  mistaken  for  the  best  produc- 
tions of  the  Fourth  and  Fifth  Dynasties.  The  other, 
without  too  openly  departing  from  established  tradition, 
preferred  to  study  from  the  life,  and  thus  drew  nearer 
to  nature  than  in  any  previous  age.  This  school  would, 
perhaps,  have  prevailed,  had  Egyptian  art  not  been 
directed  into  a new  channel  by  the  Macedonian  con- 
quest, and  by  centuries  of  intercourse  with  the  Greeks. 


Fig.  201. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


235 


The  new  departure  was  of  slow  development.  Sculptors 
began  by  clothing  the  successors 
of  Alexander  in  Egyptian  garb 
and  transforming  them  into 
Pharaohs,  just  as  they  had  in 
olden  time  transformed  the 
Hyksos  and  the  Persians. 

Works  dating  from  the  reigns 
of  the  first  Ptolemies  scarcely 
differ  from  those  of  the  best 
Sa'ite  period,  and  it  is  only  here 
and  there  that  we  detect  traces 
of  Greek  influence.  Thus,  the 
colossus  of  Alexander  II.,  at 
Boulak  (fig.  202),  wears  a flowing 
head-dress,  from  beneath  which 
his  crisp  curls  have  found  their 
way.  Soon,  however,  the  sight 
of  Greek  masterpieces  led  the 
Egyptians  of  Alexandria,  of 
Memphis,  and  of  the  cities  of 
the  Delta  to  modify  their  artistic 
methods.  Then  arose  a mixed 
school,  which  combined  certain 
elements  of  the  national  art  with 
certain  other  elements  borrowed 
from  Hellenic  art.  The  Alex- 
andrian Isis  of  the  Boulak 
Museum  is  clad  as  the  Isis  of 
Pharaonic  times ; but  she  has 
lost  the  old  slender  shape  and 
straitened  bearing.  A mutilated  effigy  of  a Prince  of 


236 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Siout,  also  at  Boulak,  would  almost  pass  lor  an  in- 
different Greek  statue. 


The  most  forcible  work 
of  this  hybrid  class  which 
has  come  down  to  us  is 
the  portrait-statue  of  one 
Hor(fig.  203),  discovered 
in  1881  at  the  foot  of 
Kom-ed-Damas,  the  site 
of  the  tomb  of  Alex- 
ander. The  head  is 
good,  though  in  a some- 
what dry  style.  The 
long,  pinched  nose,  the 
close-set  eyes,  the  small 
mouth  with  drawn-in 
corners,  the  square  chin, 
— every  feature,  in  short, 
contributes  to  give  a hard 
and  obstinate  character 
to  the  face.  The  hair  is 
closely  cropped,  yet  not 
so  closely  as  to  prevent 
it  from  dividing  naturally 
into  thick,  short  curls. 
The  body,  clothed  in  the 
chlamys,  is  awkwardly 
shapen,  and  too  narrow 
for  the  head.  One  arm 
is  brought  round  to  the 
All  these  monuments  are 
the  results  of  recent  excavations ; and  I do  not 


Fig.  203. 

hangs  pendent ; the  other 
front ; the  feet  are  lost. 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


237 


doubt  that  the  soil  of  Alexandria  would  yield  many 
such,  if  it  could  be  methodically  explored.  The 
school  which  produced  them  continued  to  draw  nearer 
and  nearer  to  the  schools  of  Greece,  and  the  stiff 
manner,  which  it  never  wholly  lost,  was  scarcely 
regarded  as  a defect  at  an  epoch  when  certain  sculp- 
tors in  the  service  of  Rome  especially  affected  the 
archaic  style.  I should  not  be  surprised  if  those 
statues  of  priests  and  priestesses  wearing  divine  insignia, 
with  which  Hadrian  adorned  the  Egyptian  rooms  of  his 
villa  at  Tibur,  might  not  be  attributed  to  the  artists  of 
this  hybrid  school.  In  those  parts  which  were  remote 
from  the  Delta,  native  art,  being  left  to  its  own 
resources,  languished,  and  slowly  perished.  Nor  was 
this  because  Greek  models,  or  even  Greek  artists,  were 
lacking.  In  the  Thebaid,  in  the  Fayoom,  at  Syene, 
I have  both  discovered  and  purchased  statuettes  and 
statues  of  Hellenic  style,  and  of  correct  and  careful 
execution.  One  of  these,  from  Coptos,  is  apparently 
a miniature  replica  of  a Venus  analogous  to  the  Venus 
of  Milo.  But  the  provincial  sculptors  were  too  dull,  or 
too  ignorant,  to  take  such  advantage  of  these  models  as 
was  taken  by  their  Alexandrian  brethren.  When  they 
sought  to  render  the  Greek  suppleness  of  figure  and 
fulness  of  limb,  they  only  succeeded  in  missing  the 
rigid  but  learned  precision  of  their  former  masters. 
In  place  of  the  fine,  delicate,  low  relief  of  the  old 
school,  they  adopted  a relief  which,  though  very  pro- 
minent, was  soft,  round,  and  feebly  modelled.  The 
eyes  of  their  personages  have  a foolish  leer ; the 
nostrils  slant  upwards ; the  corners  of  the  mouth, 
the  chin,  and  indeed  all  the  features,  are  drawn  up 


238 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


as  if  converging  towards  a central  point,  which  is 
stationed  in  the  middle  of  the  ear.  Two  schools,  each 
independent  of  the  other,  have  bequeathed  their  works 
to  us.  The  least  known  flourished  in  Ethiopia,  at  the 
court  of  the  half-civilised  kings  who  resided  at  Meroe. 
A group  brought  from  Naga  in  1882,  and  now  in  the 
Boulak  collection,  shows  the 
work  of  this  school  during  the 
first  century  of  our  era  (fig.  204). 
A god  and  a queen,  standing 
side  by  side,  are  roughly  cut  in 
a block  of  grey  granite.  The 
work  is  coarse  and  heavy,  but 
not  without  energy.  Isolated 
and  lost  in  -the  midst  of  savage 
tribes,  the  school  which  produced 
it  sank  rapidly  into  barbarism, 
and  expired  towards  the  end  of 
the  age  of  the  Antonines.  The 
Egyptian  school,  sheltered  by  the 
power  of  Rome,  survived  a little 
longer.  As  sagacious  as  the  Pto- 
lemies, the  Caesars  knew  that  by 
flattering  the  religious  prejudices 
of  their  Egyptian  subjects  they 
consolidated  their  own  rule  in  the 
valley  of  the  Nile.  At  an  enormous  cost,  they  restored 
and  rebuilt  the  temples  of  the  national  gods,  working 
after  the  old  plans  and  in  the  old  spirit  of  Pharaonic 
times.  The  great  earthquake  of  b.c.  22  had  destroyed 
Thebes,  which  now  became  a mere  place  of  pilgrimage, 
whither  devotees  repaired  to  listen  to  the  voice  of 


PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE. 


239 


Memnon  at  the  rising  of  Aurora.  But  at  Denderah 
and  Ombos,  Tiberius  and  Claudius  finished  the  decora- 
tion of  the  great  temples.  Caligula  worked  at  Coptos, 
and  the  Antonines  enriched  Esneh  and  Philae.  The 
gangs  of  workmen  employed  in  their  names  were  still 
competent  to  cut  thousands  of  bas-reliefs  according  to 
the  rules  of  the  olden  time.  Their  work  was  feeble, 
ungraceful,  absurd,  inspired  solely  by  routine  ; yet  it 
was  founded  on  antique  tradition — tradition  enfeebled 
and  degenerate,  but  still  alive.  The  troubles  which 
convulsed  the  third  century  of  our  era,  the  incursions 
of  barbarians,  the  progress  and  triumph  of  Christianity, 
caused  the  suspension  of  the  latest  works  and  the  dis- 
persion of  the  last  craftsmen.  With  them  died  all  that 
yet  survived  of  the  national  art. 


CHAPTER  V. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 

I have  treated  briefly  of  the  Noble  Arts  ; it  remains 
to  say  something  of  the  Industrial  Arts.  All  classes  of 
society  in  Egypt  were,  from  an  early  period,  imbued  with 
the  love  of  luxury,  and  with  a taste  for  the  beautiful. 
Living  or  dead,  the  Egyptian  desired  to  have  jewels 
and  costly  amulets  upon  his  person,  and  to  be  sur- 
rounded by  choice  furniture  and  elegant  utensils.  The 
objects  of  his  daily  use  must  be  distinguished,  if  not  by 
richness  of  material,  at  least  by  grace  of  form  ; and  in 
order  to  satisfy  his  requirements,  the  clay,  the  stone, 
the  metals,  the  woods,  and  other  products  of  distant 
lands  were  laid  under  contribution. 

STONE,  CLAY,  AND  GLASS. 

It  is  impossible  to  pass  through  a gallery  of  Egyptian 
antiquities  without  being  surprised  by  the  prodigious 
number  of  small  objects  in  pietra  dura  which  have 
survived  till  the  present  time.  As  yet  we  have  found 
neither  the  diamond,  the  ruby,  nor  the  sapphire  ; but 
with  these  exceptions,  the  domain  of  the  lapidary  was 
almost  as  extensive  as  at  the  present  day.  That  domain 
included  the  amethyst,  the  emerald,  the  garnet,  the 
aquamarine,  the  chrysoprase,  the  innumerable  varieties 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


241 


of  agate  and  jasper,  lapis  lazuli,  feldspath,  obsidian  ; 
also  various  rocks,  such  as  granite,  serpentine,  and 
porphyry;  certain  fossils,  as  yellow  amber  and  some 
kinds  of  turquoise  ; organic  remains,  as  coral, 
mother-of-pearl,  and  pearls ; metallic  oxides, 
such  as  hematite,  the  Oriental  turquoise,  and 
malachite.  These  substances  were  for  the 
most  part  cut  in  the  shape  of  round,  square, 
oval,  spindle-shaped,  pear-shaped,  or  lozenge- 
shaped beads.  Strung  and  arranged  row 
above  row,  these  beads  were  made  into  necklaces,  and 
are  picked  up  by  myriads  in  the  sands  of  the  great 
cemeteries  at  Memphis,  Erment,  Ekhmeem,  and  Abydos. 

The  perfection  with  which  many  are  cut, 
the  deftness  with  which  they  are  pierced, 
and  the  beauty  of  the  polish,  do  honour 
to  the  craftsmen  who  made  them.  But 
their  skill  did  not  end  here.  With  no 
tool  save  the  point,  they  fashioned  these 
materials  into  an  infinity  of  shapes — hearts,  human 
fingers,  serpents,  animals,  images  of  divinities.  All 
these  were  amulets ; and  they  were  probably  less 
valued  for  the  charm  of  the  workmanship  than 
for  the  supernatural  virtues  which  they  were 
supposed  to  possess.  The  girdle-buckle  in 
carnelian  (fig.  205)  was  the  blood  of  Isis,  and 
it  washed  away  the  sins  of  the  wearer.  The 
frog  (fig.  20 6)  was  emblematic  of  renewed 
birth.  The  little  lotus-flower  column  in 
green  feldspath  (fig.  207)  symbolised  the  divine 
gift  of  eternal  youth.  The  “Uta,”  or  symbolic  eye 
(fig.  208),  tied  to  the  wrist  or  the  arm  by  a slender 

16 


Fig.  206. 


Fig.  207. 


242 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


Fig.  208. 


string,  protected  one  against  the  evil  eye,  against 
words  spoken  in  envy  or  anger,  and  against  the  bites 
of  serpents.  Commerce  dispersed  these  objects  through- 
out all  parts  of  the  ancient  world,  and  many  of  them, 
especially  those  which  represented  the  sacred  beetle, 
were  imitated  abroad  by  the  Phoenicians  and  Syrians, 
and  bv  the  craftsmen  of  Greece,  Asia  Minor,  Etruria, 
and  Sardinia.  This  insect  was  called 
klieper  in  Egyptian,  and  its  name 
was  supposed  to  be  derived  from  the 
root  khcpra,  “ to  become.”  By  an 
obvious  play  upon  words,  the  beetle 
was  made  the  emblem  of  terrestrial 
life,  and  of  the  successive  “ becomings  ” or  develop- 
ments of  man  in  the  life  to  come.  The  scara- 
baeus  amulet  (fig.  209)  is  therefore  a symbol  of 
duration,  present  or  future  ; and  to  wear  one  was  to 
be  provided  with  a safeguard  against  death.  A thou- 
sand mystic  meanings  were  evolved  from  this  first 
idea,  each  in  some  subtle  sense  con- 
nected with  one  or  other  of  the  daily 
acts  or  usages  of  life,  so  that  scarabaei 
were  multiplied  ad  infinitum.  They 
are  found  in  all  materials  and  sizes  ; 
some  with  hawks’  heads,  some  with 
rams’  heads,  some  with  heads  of  men  or  bulls.  Some 
are  as  elaborately  wrought  on  the  underside  as  on 
the  upper;  others  are  flat  and  plain  underneath  ; and 
others  again  but  vaguely  recall  the  form  of  the  in- 
sect, and  are  called  scarabaeoids.  These  amulets  are 
pierced  longwise,  the  hole  being  large  enough  to 
admit  the  passage  of  a fine  wire  of  bronze  or  silver, 


Fig.  209. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


243 


or  of  a thread  for  suspension.  The  larger  sort 
were  regarded  as  images  of  the  heart.  These,  having 
outspread  wings  attached,  were  fastened  to  the  breast 
of  the  mummy,  and  are  inscribed  on  the  underside 
with  a prayer  adjuring  the  heart  not  to  bear  witness 
against  the  deceased  at  the  day  of  judgment.  In 
order  to  be  still  more  efficacious,  some  scenes  of 
adoration  were  occasionally  added  to  the  formula  ; i.e., 
the  disc  of  the  moon  adored  by  two  apes  upon  the 
shoulder ; two  squatting  figures  of  Amen  upon  the 
wing-sheaths  ; on  the  flat  reverse,  a representation  of 
the  boat  of  the  Sun  ; and  below  the  boat,  Osiris  mum- 
mified, squatting  between  Isis  and  Nephthys,  who 
overshadow  him  with  their  wings.  The  small  scarabs, 
having  begun  as  phylacteries,  ended  by  becoming  mere 
ornaments  without  any  kind  of  religious  meaning,  like 
the  crosses  worn  as  an  addition  to  their  toilet  by 
the  women  of  our  own  day.  They  were  set  as  rings, 
as  necklace  pendants,  as  earrings,  and  as  bracelets. 
The  underside  is  often  plain,  but  is  more  commonly 
ornamented  with  incised  designs  which  involve  no  kind 
of  modelling.  Relief-cutting,  properly  so  called  (as  in 
cameo-cutting),  was  unknown  to  Egyptian  lapidaries 
before  the  Greek  period.  The  subjects  engraved  on 
scarabsei  have  not  yet  been  classified,  nor  even  com- 
pletely catalogued.*  They  consist  of  simple  combina- 
tions of  lines  ; of  scrolls  ; of  interlacings  without  any 

* The  only  works  on  scarabeei  yet  published  are  the  Palin 
collection,  published  in  1828,  and  Mr.  Loftie’s  charming  Essay  of 
Scarabs,  which  is  in  fact  a catalogue  of  his  own  specimens,  admirably 
illustrated  from  drawings  by  Mr.  W.  M.  F.  Petrie.  Mr.  Petrie  has, 
however,  a much  more  elaborate  and  comprehensive  work  on  scara- 
baei  in  preparation.  [Translator’s  note.] 


244 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


precise  signification  ; of  symbols  to  which  the  owner 
attached  a mysterious  meaning,  unknown  to  everyone 
but  himself ; of  the  names  and  titles  of  individuals ; 
of  royal  ovals,  which  are  historically  interesting ; of 
good  wishes  ; of  pious  ejaculations  ; and  of  magic  for- 
mulae. Several  scarabaei  of  obsidian  and  crystal  date 
from  the  Sixth  Dynasty.  Others,  coarse  and  unin- 
scribed, are  of  amethyst,  emerald,  and  even  garnet ; 
these  belong  to  the  dawn  of  the  Theban  empire.  From 
the  time  of  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty  they  count  by 
millions,  and  the  execution  is  more  or  less  fine  accord- 
ing to  the  hardness  of  the  stone.  This,  in  fact,  holds 
good  for  amulets  of  all  kinds.  The  hippopotamus-heads, 
the  hearts,  the  souls  with  human  faces,  which  one  picks 
up  at  Taoud,  to  the  southward  of  Thebes,  are  barely 
roughed  out,  the  amethyst  and  green  feldspath  of  which 
they  are  made  having  presented  an  almost  uncon- 
querable resistance  to  the  point.  The  belt-buckles, 
angles,  and  head-rests  in  red  jasper,  carnelian,  and 
hematite,  are,  on  the  contrary,  finished  to  the  minutest 
details,  these  stones  being  such  as  can  be  attacked 
without  difficulty  by  a mediocre  instrument.  Lapis 
lazuli  is  soft,  insufficiently  homogeneous,  liable  to 
crumble  when  cut  to  an  edge,  and  seems  as  if  it  were 
incapable  of  being  finely  worked.  Yet  the  Egyptians 
have  used  it  for  images  of  certain  goddesses — Isis, 
Nephthys,  Neith,  Sekhet, — which  are  marvels  of  deli- 
cate cutting.  The  modelling  of  the  forms  is  carried  out 
as  boldly  as  if  the  material  were  more  trustworthy, 
and  the  features  lose  none  of  their  excellence  if 
examined  under  a magnifying  glass.  For  the  most 
part,  however,  a different  treatment  was  adopted. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


245 


Instead  of  lavishing  high  finish  upon  the  relief,  it  was 
obtained  in  a more  summary  way,  the  details  of  in- 
dividual parts  being  sacrificed  to  the  general  effect. 
Those  features  of  the  face  which  project,  and  those 
which  retire,  are  strongly  accentuated.  The  thickness 
of  the  neck,  the  swell  of  the  breast  and  shoulder,  the 
slenderness  of  the  waist,  the  fulness  of  the  hips  are  all 
exaggerated.  The  feet  and  hands  are  also  slightly 
enlarged.  This  treatment  is  based  upon  a system, 
the  results  being  boldly  and  yet  judiciously  calcu- 
lated. When  the  object  has  to  be  sculptured  in 
miniature,  a mathematical  reduction  of  the  model  is 
not  so  happy  in  its  effect  as  might  be  supposed.  The 
head  loses  character ; the  neck  looks  too  weak  ; the 
bust  is  reduced  to  a cylinder  with  a slightly  uneven 
surface  ; the  feet  do  not  look  strong  enough  to  support 
the  weight  of  the  body  ; the  principal  lines  are  not 
sufficiently  distinct  from  the  secondary  lines.  By 
suppressing  most  of  the  accessory  forms  and  develop- 
ing those  most  essential  to  the  expression,  the  Egyptians 
steered  clear  of  the  danger  of  producing  insignificant 
statuettes.  The  eye  instinctively  tones  down  whatever 
is  too  forcible,  and  supplies  what  is  lacking.  Thanks 
to  these  subtle  devices  of  the  ancient  craftsman,  a tiny 
statuette  of  this  or  that  divinity  measuring  scarcely 
an  inch  and  a quarter  in  height,  has  almost  the  breadth 
and  dignity  of  a colossus. 

The  earthly  goods  of  the  gods  and  of  the  dead  were 
mostly  in  solid  stone.  I have  elsewhere  described  the 
little  funerary  obelisks,  the  altar  bases,  the  statues,  and 
the  tables  of  offerings  found  in  tombs  of  the  ancient 
empire.  These  tables  were  made  of  alabaster  and 


246 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


limestone  during  the  Pyramid  period,  of  granite  or 
red  sandstone  under  the  Theban  kings,  and  of  basalt 
or  serpentine  from  the  time  of  the  Twenty-sixth 
Dynasty.  But  the  fashions  were  not  canonical,  all 
stones  being  found  at  all  periods.  Some  offering-tables 
are  mere  flat  discs,  or  discs  very  slightly  hollowed. 
Others  are  rectangular,  and  are  sculptured  in  relief  with 
a service  of  loaves,  vases,  fruits,  and  quarters  of  beef 
and  gazelle.  In  one  instance — the  offering-table  of 
Sitou — the  libations,  instead  of  running  off,  fell  into  a 
square  basin  which  is  marked  off  in  divisions,  showing 
the  height  of  the  Nile  at  the  different  seasons  of  the 
year  in  the  reservoirs  of  Memphis  ; namely,  twenty-five 
cubits  in  summer  during  the  inundation,  twenty-three 
in  autumn  and  early  winter,  and  twenty-two  at  the 
close  of  winter  and  in  spring-time.  In  these  various 
patterns  there  was  little  beauty ; yet  one  offering-table, 
found  at  Sakkarah,  is  a real  work  of  art.  It  is  of 
alabaster.  Two  lions,  standing  side  by  side,  support 
a sloping,  rectangular  tablet,  whence  the  libation  ran  off 
by  a small  channel  into  a vase  placed  between  the 
tails  of  the  lions.  The  alabaster  geese  found  at  Lisht 
are  not  without  artistic  merit.  They  are  cut  length- 
wise down  the  middle,  and  hollowed  out,  in  the  fashion 
of  a box.  Those  which  I have  seen  elsewhere,  and, 
generally  speaking,  all  simulacra  of  offerings,  as  loaves, 
cakes,  heads  of  oxen  or  gazelles,  branches  of  black 
grapes,  and  the  like,  in  carved  and  painted  limestone,  are 
of  doubtful  taste  and  clumsy  execution.  They  are  not 
very  common,  and  I have  met  with  them  only  in  tombs 
of  the  Fifth  and  Twelfth  Dynasties.  Canopic  vases, 
on  the  contrary,  were  always  carefully  wrought.  They 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


247 


were  made  in  but  two  kinds  of  stone — limestone  and 
alabaster  ; but  the  heads  which  surmounted  them  were 
often  of  painted  wood.  The  canopic  vases  of  Pepi  I. 
are  of  alabaster  ; and  those  of  a king 
buried  in  the  southernmost  pyramid  at 
Lisht  are  also  of  alabaster,  as  are  the 
human  heads  upon  the  lids.  One,  in- 
deed, is  of  such  fine  execution  that  I 
can  only  compare  it  with  that  of  the 
statue  of  Khafra.  The  most  ancient 
funerary  statuettes  yet  found — those,  namely,  of  the 
Eleventh  Dynasty — are  of  alabaster,  like  the  canopic 
vases  ; but  from  the  time  of  the  Thirteenth 
Dynasty,  they  were  cut  in  compact  limestone. 
The  workmanship  is  very  unequal  in  quality. 
Some  are  real  chef s-cC  oeuvre,  and  reproduce  the 
physiognomy  of  the  deceased  as  faithfully  as 
a portrait  statue.  Lastly,  there  are  the  per- 
fume vases,  which  complete  the  list  of  objects 
Flg-211'  found  in  temples  and  tombs.  The  names  of 
these  vases  are  far  from  being  satisfactorily  established, 
and  most  of  the  special  designations  furnished  in  the 
texts  remain  as  yet  without  equivalents  in  our  language. 
The  greater  number  were  of  alabaster, 
turned  and  polished.  Some  are  heavy 
and  ugly  (fig.  210),  while  others  are  dis- 
tinguished by  an  elegance  and  diversity 
of  form  which  do  honour  to  the  inventive 
talent  of  the  craftsmen.  Many  are  spindle- 
shaped  and  pointed  at  the  end  (fig.  211),  or  round  in 
the  body,  narrow  in  the  neck,  and  flat  at  the  bottom 
(fig.  212).  They  are  unornamented,  except  perhaps  by 


g.  212. 


248 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


two  lotus-bud  handles,  or  two  lions’  heads,  or  perhaps  a 
little  female  head  just  at  the  rise  of  the  neck  (fig.  213). 
The  smallest  of  these  vases  were  not  intended  for  liquids, 
but  for  pomades,  medicinal  ointments,  and  salves  made 
with  honey.  Some  of  the  more  important  series 
comprise  large-bodied  flasks,  with  an  upright  cylin- 
drical neck  and  a flat  cover  (fig.  214). 
In  these,  the  Egyptians  kept  the  antimony 
powder  with  which  they  darkened  their 
eyes  and  eyebrows.  The  Kohl-pot  was  a 
universal  toilette  ornament ; perhaps  the 
only  one  commonly  used  by  all  classes 
of  society.  When  designing  it,  the  crafts- 
man gave  free  play  to  his  fancy,  borrowing 
forms  of  men,  plants,  and  animals  for  its 
adornment.  Now  it  appears  in  the  guise  ot 
a full-blown  lotus ; now  it  is  a hedgehog  ; a hawk  ; a 
monkey  clasping  a column  to  his  breast,  or  climbing  up 
the  side  of  a jar  ; a grotesque  figure  of  the  god  Bes  ; a 
kneeling  woman,  whose  scooped-out  body  contained  the 
powder ; a young  girl  carrying  a wine-jar.  Once 
started  upon  this  path,  the  imagina- 
tion of  the  artists  knew  no  limits. 

As  for  materials,  everything  was  made 
to  serve  in  turn — granite,  diorite, 
breccia,  red  jade,  alabaster,  and  soft 
limestone,  which  lent  itself  more  readily  to  caprices  of 
form  ; finally,  a still  more  malleable  and  facile  sub- 
stance— clay,  painted  and  glazed. 

It  was  not  for  want  of  material  that  the  art  of 
modelling  and  baking  clays  failed  to  be  as  fully 
developed  in  Egypt  as  in  Greece.  The  valley  of  the 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


249 


Nile  is  rich  in  a fine  and  ductile  potter’s  clay,  with 
which  the  happiest  results  might  have  been  achieved, 
had  the  native  craftsman  taken  the  trouble  to  prepare 
it  with  due  care.  Metals  and  hard  stone  were,  how- 
ever, always  preferred  for  objects  of  luxury ; the 
potter  was  fain,  therefore,  to  be  content  with  supplying 
only  the  commonest  needs  of  household  and  daily  life. 
He  was  wont  to  take  whatever  clay  happened  to  be 
nearest  to  the  place  where  he  was  working,  and  this 
clay  was  habitually  badly  washed,  badly  kneaded,  and 
fashioned  with  the  finger  upon  a primitive  wheel 
worked  by  the  hand.  The  firing  was  equally  careless. 
Some  pieces  were  barely  heated  at  all,  and  melted  if 
they  came  into  contact  with  water,  while  others  were 
as  hard  as  tiles.  All  tombs  of  the  ancient  empire 
contain  vases  of  a red  or  yellow  ware,  often  mixed,  like 
the  clay  of  bricks,  with  finely-chopped  straw  or  weeds. 
These  are  mostly  large  solid  jars  with  oval  bodies, 
short  necks,  and  wide  mouths,  but  having  neither  foot 
nor  handles.  With  them  are  also  found  pipkins  and 
pots,  in  which  to  store  the  dead  man’s  provisions  ; 
bowls  more  or  less  shallow  ; and  flat  plates,  such  as 
are  still  used  by  the  fellaheen.  The  poorer  folk  some- 
times buried  miniature  table  and  kitchen  services  with 
their  dead,  as  being  less  costly  than  full-sized  vessels. 
The  surface  is  seldom  glazed,  seldom  smooth  and 
lustrous  ; but  is  ordinarily  covered  with  a coat  of 
whitish,  unbaked  paint,  which  scales  off  at  a touch. 
Upon  this  surface  there  is  neither  incised  design,  nor 
ornament  in  relief,  nor  any  kind  of  inscription,  but 
merely  some  four  or  five  parallel  lines  in  red,  black,  or 
yellow,  round  the  neck. 


250 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


The  pottery  of  the  earliest  Theban  dynasties  which 
I have  collected  at  El-Khozam  and  Gebelayn  is  more 
carefully  wrought  than  the  pottery  of  the  Memphite 
period.  It  may  be  classified  under  two  heads.  The 
first  comprises  plain,  smooth-bodied  vases,  black  below 
and  dark  red  above.  On  examining  this  ware  where 
broken,  we  see  that  the  colour  was  mixed  with  the  clay 
during  the  kneading,  and  that  the  two  zones  were 
separately  prepared,  roughly  joined,  and  then  uniformly 
glazed.  The  second  class  comprises  vases  of  various 
and  sometimes  eccentric  forms,  moulded  of  red  or 
tawny  clay.  Some  are  large  cylinders  closed  at  one 
end  ; others  are  flat ; others  oblong 
and  boat-shaped  ; others,  like  cruets, 
joined  together  two  and  two,  yet 
with  no  channel  of  communication* 
(fig.  215).  The  ornamentation  is 
carried  over  the  whole  surface,  and  generally  consists 
of  straight  parallel  lines,  cross  lines,  zigzags,  dotted 
lines,  or  small  crosses  and  lines  in  geometrical  com- 
bination ; all  these  patterns  being  in  white  when  the 
ground  is  red,  or  in  reddish  brown  when  the  ground 
is  yellow  or  whitish.  Now  and  then  we  find  figures 
of  men  and  animals  interspersed  among  the  geo- 
metrical combinations.  The  drawing  is  rude,  almost 
childish  ; and  it  is  difficult  to  tell  whether  the  sub- 
jects represent  herds  of  antelopes  or  scenes  of  ga- 
zelle-hunting. The  craftsmen  who  produced  these 
rude  attempts  were  nevertheless  contemporary  with 
the  artists  who  decorated  the  rock-cut  tombs  at  Beni- 


Fig.  215. 


* These  twin  vases  are  still  made  at  Assouan.  I bought  a small 
specimen  there  in  1S74.  [Translator's  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS.  25  I 

Hassan.  As  regards  the  period  of  Egypt’s  great 
military  conquests,  the  Theban  tombs  of  that  age 
have  supplied  objects  enough  to  stock  a museum  of 
pottery  ; but  unfortunately  the  types  are  very  unin- 
teresting. To  begin  with,  we  find  hand-made  sepul- 
chral statuettes  modelled  in  summary  fashion  from 
an  oblong  lump  of  clay.  A pinch  of  the  craftsman’s 
fingers  brought  out  the  nose ; two  tiny  knobs  and 
two  little  stumps,  separately  modelled  and  stuck  on, 
represented  the  eyes  and  arms.  The  better  sort  of 
figures  were  pressed  in  moulds  of  baked  clay,  of  which 
several  specimens  have  been  found.  They  were  gene- 
rally moulded  in  one  piece ; then  lightly  touched  up  ; 
then  baked ; and  lastly,  on  coming  out  of  the  oven, 
were  painted  red,  yellow,  or  white,  and  inscribed  with 
the  pen.  Some  are  of  very  good  style,  and  almost 
equal  those  made  in  limestone.  The  Ushabti  of  the 
scribe  Hori,  in  the  Boulak  collection,  are  about  twelve 
inches  high,  and  show  what  the  Egyptians  could  have 
achieved  in  this  branch  of  the  art  if  they  had  cared 
to  cultivate  it.  Funerary  cones  were  objects  purely 
devotional,  and  the  most  consummate  art  could  have 
done  nothing  to  make  them  elegant.  A funerary  cone 
consists  of  a long,  conical  mass  of  clay,  stamped  at  the 
larger  end  with  a few  rows  of  hieroglyphs  stating  the 
name,  parentage,  and  titles  of  the  deceased,  the  whole 
surface  being  coated  with  a whitish  wash.  These  are 
simulacra  of  votive  cakes,  intended  for  the  eternal 
nourishment  of  the  Double.  Many  of  the  vases  buried 
in  tombs  of  this  period  are  painted  to  imitate  alabaster, 
granite,  basalt,  bronze,  and  even  gold  ; and  were  cheap 
substitutes  for  those  vases  made  in  precious  materials 


252 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


which  wealthy  mourners  were  wont  to  lavish  on  their 
dead.  Among  those  especially  intended  to  contain 
water  or  flowers,  some  are  covered  with  designs  drawn 
in  red  and  black  (fig.  216),  such  as  concen- 
tric lines  and  circles  (fig.  217),  meanders, 
religious  emblems  (fig.  218),  cross-lines 
resembling  network,  festoons  of  flowers 
and  buds,  and  long  leafy  stems  carried 
downward  from  the  neck  to  the  body  of 
the  vase,  and  upward  from  the  body  of 
the  vase  to  the  neck.  Those  in  the  tomb  of  Sennot- 
mou  were  decorated  on  one  side  with  a large  necklace, 
or  collar,  like  the  collars  found  upon  mummies, 
painted  in  very  bright  colours  to  simulate 
natural  flowers  or  enamels.  Canopic  vases 
in  baked  clay,  though  rarely  met  with  under 
the  Eighteenth  Dynasty,  became  more  and 
more  common  as  the  prosperity  of  Thebes  declined. 
The  heads  upon  the  lids  are  for  the  most  part 
prettily  turned,  especially  the  human  heads.* 
Modelled  with  the  hand,  scooped  out  to 
diminish  the  weight,  and  then  slowly  baked, 
each  was  finally  painted  with  the  colours 
especially  pertaining  to  the  genius  whose 
head  was  represented.  Towards  the  time  of 
the  Twentieth  Dynasty,  it  became  customary 
to  enclose  the  bodies  of  sacred  animals  in  vases  of  this 


217. 


* The  funerary  vases  commonly  called  “ canopic  ” were  four  in 
number,  and  contained  the  embalmed  viscera  of  the  mummy.  The 
lids  of  these  vases  were  fashioned  to  represent  the  heads  of  the  four 
genii  of  Amenti,  Hapi,  Tuatmutf,  Kebhsennef,  and  Amset ; i.e.,  the 
Ape-head,  the  Jackal-head,  the  Hawk-head,  and  the  human  head. 
[Translator's  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


253 


type.  Those  found  near  Ekhmeem  contain  jackals  and 
hawks ; those  of  Sakkarah  are  devoted  to  serpents, 
eggs,  and  mummified  rats  ; those  of  Abydos  hold  the 
sacred  ibis.  These  last  are  by  far  the  finest.  On  the 
body  of  the  vase,  the  protecting  goddess  Khouit  is 
depicted  with  outspread  wings,  while  Horus  and  Thoth 
are  seen  presenting  the  bandage  and  the  unguent  vase  ; 
the  whole  subject  being  painted  in  blue  and  red  upon  a 
white  ground.  From  the  time  of  the  Greek  domination, 
the  national  poverty  being  always  on  the  increase, 
baked  clay  came  into  use  for  coffins  as  well  as  for 
canopic  vases.  In  the  Isthmus  of  Suez,  at  Ahnas-el- 
Medineh,  in  the  Fayoom,  at  Assouan,  and  in  Nubia, 
we  find  whole  cemeteries  in  which  the  sarcophagi  are 
made  of  baked  clay.  Some  are  like  oblong  boxes 
rounded  at  each  end,  with  a saddle-back  lid.  Some 
are  in  human  form,  but  barbarous  in  style,  the  heads 
being  surmounted  by  a pudding-shaped  imitation  of 
the  ancient  Egyptian  head-dress,  and  the  features 
indicated  by  two  or  three  strokes  of  the  modelling  tool 
or  the  thumb.  Two  little  lumps  of  clay  stuck  awkwardly 
upon  the  breast  indicate  the  coffin  of  a woman.  Even 
in  these  last  days  of  Egyptian  civilisation,  it  was  only 
the  coarsest  objects  which  were  left  of  the  natural  hue 
of  the  baked  clay.  As  of  old,  the  surfaces  were,  as  a 
rule,  overlaid  with  a coat  of  colour,  or  with  a richly 
gilded  glaze. 

Glass  was  known  to  the  Egyptians  from  the  remotest 
period,  and  glass-blowing  is  represented  in  tombs 
which  date  from  some  thousands  of  years  before  our 
era  (fig.  219).  The  craftsman,  seated  before  the  furnace, 
takes  up  a small  quantity  of  the  fused  substance  upon 


254 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


the  end  of  his  cane  and  blows  it  circumspectly,  taking 
care  to  keep  it  in  contact  with  the  flame,  so  that  it  may 
not  harden  during  the  operation.  Chemical  analysis 
shows  the  constituent  parts  of  Egyptian  glass  to  have 
been  nearly  identical  with  our  own  ; but  itcontains,  besides 
silex,  calx,  alumina,  and  soda,  a relatively  large  propor- 
tion of  extraneous  substances,  as  copper,  oxide  of  iron, 
and  oxide  of  manganese,  which  they  apparently  knew 
not  how  to  eliminate.  Hence  Egyptian  glass  is  scarcely 
ever  colourless,  but  inclines  to  an  uncertain  shade  of 
yellow  or  green.  Some  ill-made  pieces  are  so  utterly 
decomposed  that  they  flake  away,  or  fall  to  iridescent 
dust,  at  the  lightest  touch.  Others  have  suffered  little 


Colourless  glass  was  not  esteemed  by  the  Egyptians  as 
it  is  by  ourselves  ; whether  opaque  or  transparent,  they 
preferred  it  coloured.  The  dyes  were  obtained  by 
mixing  metallic  oxides  with  the  ordinary  ingredients ; 
that  is  to  say,  copper  and  cobalt  for  the  blues,  copperas 
for  the  greens,  manganese  for  the  violets  and  browns, 
iron  for  the  yellows,  and  lead  or  tin  for  the  whites. 
One  variety  of  red  contains  30  per  cent,  of  bronze,  and 
becomes  coated  with  verdigris  if  exposed  to  damp.  All 
this  chemistry  was  empirical,  and  acquired  by  instinct. 
Finding  the  necessary  elements  at  hand,  or  being 
supplied  with  them  from  a distance,  they  made  use 
of  them  at  hazard,  and  without  being  too  certain  of 


from  time  or  damp, 
but  are  streaky  and 


full  of  bubbles.  A 


Fig.  219. 


few  are,  however, 
perfectly  homo- 
geneous and  limpid. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


255 


obtaining  the  effects  they  sought.  Many  of  their  most 
harmonious  combinations  were  due  to  accident,  and 
they  could  not  reproduce  them  at  will.  The  masses 
which  they  obtained  by  these  unscientific  means  were 
nevertheless  of  very  considerable  dimensions.  The 
classic  authors  tell  of  stelae,  sarcophagi,  and  columns 
made  in  one  piece.  Ordinarily,  however,  glass  was  used 
only  for  small  objects,  and,  above  all,  for  counterfeiting 
precious  stones.  However  cheaply  they  may  have  been 
sold  in  the  Egyptian  market,  these  small  objects  were 
not  accessible  to  all  the  world.  The  glass-workers 
imitated  the  emerald,  jasper,  lapis  lazuli,  and  carnelian 
to  such  perfection  that  even  now  we  are  sometimes 
embarrassed  to  distinguish  the  real  stones  from  the 
false.  The  glass  was  run  into  moulds  made  of  stone 
or  limestone  cut  to  the  forms  required,  as  beads,  discs, 
rings,  pendants,  rods,  and  plaques  covered  with  figures 
of  men  and  animals,  gods  and  goddesses.  Eyes  and 
eyebrows  for  the  faces  of  statues  in  stone  or  bronze 
were  likewise  made  of  glass,  as  also  bracelets.  Glass 
was  inserted  into  the  hollows  of  incised  hieroglyphs, 
and  hieroglyphs  were  also  cut  out  in  glass.  In  this’ 
manner,  whole  inscriptions  were  composed,  and  let  into 
wood,  stone,  or  metal.  The  two  mummy-cases  which 
enclosed  the  body  of  Netem-t,  mother  of  the  Pharaoh 
Herhor  Se-Amen,  are  decorated  in  this  style.  Except 
the  headdress  of  the  effigy  and  some  minor  details, 
these  cases  are  gilded  all  over ; the  texts  and  the 
principal  part  of  the  ornamentation  being  formed  of 
glass  enamels,  which  stand  out  in  brilliant  contrast 
with  the  dead  gold  ground.  The  Fayoom  mummies 
were  coated  with  plaster  or  stucco,  the  texts  and 


256 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


religious  designs,  which  are  generally  painted,  being 
formed  of  glass  enamels  incrusted  upon  the  surface  of 
the  plaster.  Some  of  the  largest  are  made  of  several 
pieces  of  glass  joined  together  and  retouched  with  the 
chisel,  in  imitation  of  bas-relief.  Thus  the  face,  hands, 
and  feet  of  the  goddess  Ma  are  done  in  turquoise  blue, 
her  headdress  in  dark  blue,  her  feather  in  alternate 
stripes  of  blue  and  yellow,  and  her  raiment  in  deep  red. 
Upon  a wooden  shrine  recently  discovered  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Daphnae,*  and  upon  a fragment  of 
mummy-case  in  the  Museum  of  Turin,  the  hieroglyphic 
forms  of  many-coloured  glass  are  inlaid  upon  the  sombre 
ground  of  the  wood,  the  general  effect  being  inconceivably 
rich  and  brilliant.  Glass  filigrees,  engraved  glass,  cut 
glass,  soldered  glass,  glass  imitations  of  wood,  of  straw, 
and  of  string,  were  all  known  to  the  Egyptians  of  old. 
I have  under  my  hand  at  this  present  moment  a square 
rod  formed  of  innumerable  threads  of  coloured  glass 
fused  into  one  solid  body,  which  gives  the  royal  oval 
of  one  of  the  Amenemhats  at  the  part  where  it  is  cut 
through.  The  design  is  carried  through  the  whole 
‘ length  of  the  rod,  and  wherever  that  rod  may  be  cut, 
the  royal  oval  reappears.!  One  glass  case  in  the 
Boulak  Museum  is  entirely  stocked  with  small  objects 

* The  remains  of  this  shrine,  together  with  many  hundreds  of 
beautiful  glass  hieroglyphs,  figures,  emblems,  etc.,  for  inlaying, 
besides  moulds  and  other  items  of  the  glassworker’s  stock,  were 
discovered  by  Mr.  F.  LI.  Griffith  at  Tell  Gemayemi,  about  equidistant 
from  the  mounds  of  Tanis  and  Daphnae  (San  and  Defenneh)  in  March 
1886.  For  a fuller  account  see  Mr.  Griffith's  report,  printed  in  the 
Report  of  the  Fourth  Annual  General  Meeting  of  the  Egypt  Explora- 
tion Fund,  1885-6.  [Translator’s  note.] 

f Some  of  these  beautiful  rods  were  also  found  at  Tell  Gemayemi 
by  Mr.  F.  LI.  Griffith,  and  in  such  sound  condition  that  it  was  possible 
to  cut  them  in  thin  slices,  for  distribution  among  various  museums. 
(Translator's  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


257 


in  coloured  glass.  Here  we  see  an  ape  on  all  fours, 
smelling  some  large  fruit  which  lies  upon  the  ground ; 
yonder,  a woman’s  head,  front  face,  upon  a white  or 
green  ground  surrounded  by  a red  border.  Most  of 
the  plaques  represent  only  rosettes,  stars, 
and  single  flowers  or  posies.  One  of  the 
smallest  represents  a black-and-white  Apis, 
walking,  the  work  being  so  delicate  that 
it  loses  none  of  its  effect  under  the  mag- 
nifying glass.  The  greater  number  of 
these  objects  date  from,  and  after,  the  first 
Sa'ite  dynasty  ; but  our  Theban  excavations 
prove  that  the  taste  for  coloured  glass  (and 
consequently  its  fabrication)  was  common 
in  Egypt  from  the  tenth  century  before  our  era.  At 
Koornet-Murraee  and  Sheykh  Abd-el-Goornah,  there 
have  been  found,  not  only  amulets  for  the  use  of  the 
dead,  such  as  colonnettes,  hearts, 
mystic  eyes,  hippopotami  walking 
erect,  and  ducks  in  pairs,  done  in 
parti-coloured  pastes,  blue,  red, 
and  yellow,  but  also  vases  of  a type 
which  we  have  been  accustomed  to 
regard  as  of  Phoenician  and  Cypriote 
manufacture.*  Here,  for  example, 
is  a little  cenochoe,  of  a light  blue 
semi-opaque  glass  (fig.  220)  ; the 
inscription  in  the  name  of  Thothmes  III.,  the  ovals 
on  the  neck,  and  the  palm-fronds  on  the  body  of 
the  vase  being  in  yellow.  Here  again  is  a len- 

* That  is,  of  the  kind  known  as  the  “ false  murrhine.”  [Translator’s 
note.] 


Fig.  220. 


17 


258 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


ticular  phial,  three  and  a quarter  inches  in  height 
(fig.  22 1 ),  the  ground  colour  of  a deep  ocean  blue, 
admirably  pure  and  intense,  upon  which  a fern-leaf 
pattern  in  yellow  stands  out  both  boldly  and  deli- 
cately. A yellow  thread  runs  round 
the  rim,  and  two  little  handles  of  light 
green  are  attached  to  the  neck.  A 
miniature  amphora  of  the  same  height 
(fig.  222)  is  of  a dark,  semi-transparent 
olive  green.  A zone  of  blue  and  yellow 
zigzags,  bounded  above  and  below  by 
yellow  bands,  encircles  the  body  of  the 
vase  at  the  part  of  its  largest  circum- 
ference. The  handles  are  pale  green,  and 
the  thread  round  the  lip  is  pale  blue.  Princess  Nesik- 
honsu  had  beside  her,  in  the  vault  at  Dayr-el-Baharee, 
some  glass  goblets  of  similar  work.  Seven  were  in 


Fig.  223. 

whole  colours,  light  green  and  blue ; four  were  of 
black  glass  spotted  with  white ; one  only  was  decor- 
ated with  many-coloured  fern-leaves  arranged  in  two 


Fig.  222. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


259 


rows  (fig.  223).  The  national  glass  works  were  there- 
fore in  full  operation  during  the  time  of  the  great 
Theban  dynasties.  Huge  piles  of  scoriae  mixed  with 
slag  yet  mark  the  spot  where  their  furnaces  were 
stationed  at  the  Ramesseum,  at  El-Kab,  and  at  the  Tell 
of  Eshmooneyn. 

The  Egyptians  also  enamelled  stone.  One  half  at 
least  of  the  scarabaei,  cylinders,  and  amulets  contained 
in  our  museums  are  of  limestone,  schist,  or  lignite, 
covered  with  a coloured  glaze.  Doubtless  the  common 
clay  seemed  to.  them  inappropriate  to  this  kind  oi 
decoration,  for  they  substituted  in  its  place  various 
sorts  of  earth — some  white  and  sandy  ; another  sort 
brown  and  fine,  which  they  obtained  by  the  pulveri- 
sation of  a particular  kind  of  limestone  found  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Keneh,  Luxor,  and  Assouan  ; and  a 
third  sort,  reddish  in  tone,  and  mixed  with  powdered 
sandstone  and  brick-dust.  These  various  substances 
are  known  by  the  equally  inexact  names  of  Egyptian 
porcelain  and  Egyptian  faience.  The  oldest  specimens, 
which  are  hardly  glazed  at  all,  are  coated  with  an 
excessively  thin  slip.  This  vitreous  matter  has,  how- 
ever, generally  settled  into  the  hollows  of  the  hiero- 
glyphs or  figures,  where  its  lustre  stands  out  in  strong 
contrast  with  the  dead  surface  of  the  surrounding  parts. 
The  colour  most  frequently  in  use  under  the  ancient 
dynasties  was  green  ; but  yellow,  red,  brown,  violet, 
and  blue  were  not  disdained.  Blue  predominated  in 
the  Theban  factories  from  the  earliest  beginning  of 
the  Middle  Empire.  This  blue  was  brilliant,  yet 
tender,  in  imitation  of  turquoise  or  lapis  lazuli.  The 
Boulak  Museum  formerly  contained  three  hippopota- 


260 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


muses  of  this  shade,  discovered  in  the  tomb  of  an 
Entef  at  Drah-Aboo'l-Neggah.*  One  was  tying  down  ; 
the  two  others  were  standing  in  the  marshes,  their 
bodies  being  covered  b}^  the  potter  with  pen-and-ink 
sketches  of  reeds  and  lotus  plants,  amid  which  hover 
birds  and  butterflies.  This  was  his  naive  way  ol 
depicting  the  animal  amid  his  natural  surroundings. 
The  blue  is  splendid,  and  we  must  overleap  twenty 
centuries  before  we  again  find  so  pure  a colour  among 
the  funerary  statuettes  of  Dayr-el-Baharee.  Green  re- 
appears under  the  Sai'te  dynasties,  but  it  is  a paler 

green  than  that  of 
more  ancient  times. 
This  hue  prevailed 
in  the  north  of 
Egypt,  at  Memphis, 
Bubastis,  and  Sais, 
without,  however, 
entirely  banishing 
the  blue.  The 
other  colours  before  mentioned  were  in  current  use 
for  not  more  than  four  or  five  centuries  ; that  is  to  say, 
from  the  time  of  Ahmes  I.  to  the  time  of  the  Rames- 
sides.  It  was  then,  and  only  then,  that  “ Ushabti”  of 
white  or  red  glaze,  rosettes  and  lotus  flowers  in  yellow, 
red,  and  violet,  and  parti-coloured  kohl-pots  abounded. 
The  potters  of  the  time  of  Amenhotep  III.  had  a special 
liking  for  greys  and  violets.  The  olive-shaped  amulets 
which  are  inscribed  with  the  names  of  this  Pharaoh 
and  the  princesses  of  his  family  are  decorated  with 

* There  is  a fine  specimen  at  the  Lpuvre,  and  another  in  the 
museum  at  Leyden.  [Translator's  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


261 


pale  blue  hieroglyphs  upon  a delicate  mauve  ground. 
The  vase  of  Queen  Tii  in  the  Boulak  collection  is  of 
grey  and  blue,  with  ornaments  in  two  colours  round 
the  neck.  The  fabrication  of  many-coloured  enamels 
seems  to  have  attained  its  greatest  development  under 
Khoo-en-Aten  ; at  all  events,  it 
was  at  Tell-el-Amarnathat  I found 
the  brightest  and  most  delicately 
fashioned  specimens,  such  as 
yellow,  green,  and  violet  rings, 
blue  and  white  fleurettes,  fish, 
lutes,  figs,  and  bunches  of 
grapes.  One  little  statuette 
of  Horus  has  a red  face  and 
a blue  body ; a ring  bezel  bears  the  name  of  a king 
in  violet  upon  a ground  of  light  blue.  However 
restricted  the  space,  the  various  colours  are  laid 
in  with  so  sure  a hand  that  they  never  run  one  into 
the  other,  but  stand  out  separately  and  vividly.  A 
vase  to  contain  antimony  powder, 
chased  and  mounted  on  a pierced 
stand,  is  glazed  with  reddish 
brown  (fig.  225).  Another,  in 
the  shape  of  a mitred  hawk,  is 
blue  picked  out  with  black  spots. 
It  belonged  of  old  to  Ahmes  I. 
A third,  hollowed  out  of  the  body  of  an  energetic 
little  hedgehog,  is  of  a changeable  green  (fig.  226). 
A Pharaoh’s  head  in  dead  blue  wears  a klaft  * with 


* Klaft,  i.e.,  a headdress  of  folded  linen.  The  beautiful  little  head 
here  referred  to  is  in  the  Boulak  Museum,  and  is  a portrait  of  the 
Pharaoh  Necho.  [Translator’s  note.] 


262 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


dark-blue  stripes.  Fine  as  these  pieces  are,  the  cliej- 
d’ceuvre  of  the  series  is  a statuette  of  one  Ptahmes, 
first  Prophet  of  Amen,  now  in  the  Boulak 
Museum.  The  hieroglyphic  inscriptions  as. 
well  as  the  details  of  the  mummy  bandages 
are  chased  in  relief  upon  a white  ground  ot 
admirable  purity,  and  filled  in  with  enamel. 
The  face  and  hands  are  of  tur- 
quoise blue  ; the  head-dress 
is  yellow,  with  violet  stripes  ; 
the  hieroglyphic  characters 
of  the  inscription,  and  the 
vulture  with  outspread  wings 
upon  the  breast  of  the  figure, 
are  also  violet.  The  whole 
is  delicate,  brilliant,  and  har- 
monious ; not  a flaw  mars 

the  purity  of  the  contours 
or  the  clearness  of  the 
lines. 

Glazed  pottery  was 
common  from  the  earliest 
times.  Cups  with  a foot 
(fig.  22  7),  blue  bowls, 
rounded  at  the  bottom  and 
decorated  in  black  ink 
with  mystic  eyes,  lotus 
flowers,  fishes  (fig.  228), 
and  palm-leaves,  date,  as  a 
rule,  from  the  Eighteenth, 
Nineteenth,  or  Twentieth  Dynasties.  Lenticular 
ampullae  coated  with  a greenish  glaze,  flanked  by  two 


Fig.  227. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


263 


crouching  monkeys  for  handles,  decorated  along  the 
edge  with  pearl  or  egg-shaped  ornaments,  and  round 
the  body  with  elaborate  collars  (fig.  229),  belong 
almost  without  exception  to  the  reigns  of  Apries 
and  Amasis.  * Sistrum  handles,  saucers,  drinking- 
cups  in  the  form  of  a half-blown  lotus,  plates, 


dishes — in  short,  all  vessels  in  common  use — were 
required  to  be  not  only  easy  to  keep  clean,  but 
pleasant  to  look  upon.  Did  they  carry  their  taste  for 
enamelled  ware  so  far  as  to  cover  the  walls  of  their 
houses  with  glazed  tiles  ? Upon  this  point  we  can 
pronounce  neither  affirmatively  nor  negatively  ; the  few 
examples  of  this  kind  of  decoration  which  we  possess 

* Apries,  in  Egyptian  “ Uah-ab-Ra,”  the  biblical  “Hophra;” 
Amasis,  Ahmes  II.  ; both  of  the  Twenty-sixth  Dynasty.  [Trans- 
lator’s note.] 


264 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


being  all  from  royal  buildings.  Upon  a yellow  brick, 
we  have  the  family  name  and  banner  of  Pepi  I.  ; upon 
a green  brick,  the  name  of  Rameses  III. ; upon 
certain  red  and  white  fragments,  the  names  of  Seti  I. 
and  Sheshonk. 

Up  to  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  one  of 
the  chambers  in  the  step  pyramid  at  Sakkarah 
yet  retained  its  mural  decoration  of  glazed 
ware  (fig.  230).  For  three-fourths  of  the 
wall-surface  it  was  covered  with  green  tiles, 
oblong  in  shape,  flat  at  the  back,  and  slightly 
convex  on  the  face  (fig.  231).  A square 
tenon,  pierced  through  with  a hole  large 
enough  to  receive  a wooden  rod,  served  to 
Flg'  ~jI'  fix  them  together  in  horizontal  rows.*  The 
three  rows  which  frame  in  the  doorway  are  inscribed 
with  the  titles  of  an  unclassed  Pharaoh  belonging  to 
one  of  the  first  Memphite  dynasties.  The  hieroglyphs 
are  relieved  in  blue,  red,  green,  and  yellow,  upon  a 
tawny  ground.  Twenty  centuries  later,  Rameses  III. 
originated  a new  style  at  Tell-el-Yahoodeh. 

This  time  the  question  of  ornamentation 
concerned,  not  a single  chamber,  but  a 
whole  temple.  The  mass  of  the  building 
was  of  limestone  and  alabaster ; but  the 
pictorial  subjects,  instead  of  being  sculptured  according 
to  custom,  were  of  a kind  of  mosaic  made  with  almost 
equal  parts  of  stone  tesserae  and  glazed  ware. 

The  most  frequent  item  in  the  scheme  of  decoration 
was  a roundel  moulded  of  a sandy  frit  coated  with 

*Some  specimens  of  these  tiles  may  be  seen  in  the  Egyptian 
department  at  the  British  Museum.  [Translator’s  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


265 


blue  or  grey  slip,  upon  which  is  a cream-coloured 
rosette  (fig.  232).  Some  of  these  rosettes  are  framed 
in  geometrical  designs  (fig.  233)  or  spider-web  patterns  ; 
some  represent  open  flowers.  The  central  boss  is  in 
relief ; the  petals  and  tracery  are  encrusted  in  the 
mass.  These  roundels,  which  are  of  various  diameters 
ranging  from  three-eighths  of  an  inch  to  four  inches, 
were  fixed  to  the  walls  by  means  of  a very 
fine  cement.  They  were  used  to  form  many 
different  designs,  as  scrolls,  foliage,  and 
parallel  fillets,  such  as  may  be  seen  on 
the  foot  of  an  altar  and  the  base  of  a 
column  preserved  in  the  Boulak  Museum.  The  royal 
ovals  were  mostly  in  one  piece ; so  also  were  the 
figures.  The  details,  either  incised  or  modelled 
upon  the  clay  before  firing,  were  afterwards  painted 
with  such  colours  as  might  be  suitable.  The  lotus 
flowers  and  leaves  which  were  carried  along  the 
bottom  of  the  walls  or  the  length 
of  the  cornices,  were,  on  the  con- 
trary, made  up  of  independent 
pieces  ; each  colour  being  a sepa- 
rate morsel  cut  to  fit  exactly  into 
the  pieces  by  which  it  was  sur- 
rounded (fig.  234).  This  temple 
was  rifled  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century, 
and  some  figures  of  prisoners  brought  thence  have 
been  in  the  Louvre  collection  ever  since  the  time 
of  Champollion.  All  that  remained  of  the  building  and 
its  decoration  was  demolished  a few  years  ago  by 
certain  dealers  in  antiquities,  and  the  debris  are  now 
dispersed  in  all  directions.  Mariette,  though  with 


Fig-  233. 


266 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


great  difficulty,  recovered  some  of  the  more  important 
fragments,  such  as  the  name  of  Rameses  III.,  which 

dates  the  building ; 
some  borderings  of 
lotus  flowers  and 
birds  with  human 
hands  (fig.  235) \ 
and  some  heads 
of  Asiatics  and 
negro  prisoners 
(fig.  236).  * The  destruction  of  this  monument  is 
the  more  grievous  because  the 
Egyptians  cannot  have  constructed 
many  after  the  same  type.  Glazed 
bricks,  painted  tiles,  and  enamelled 
mosaics  are  readily  injured ; and 
in  the  judgment  of  a people  ena-  Fig.  236. 

moured  of  stability  and  eternity,  that  would  be  the 
gravest  of  radical  defects. 


2. WOOD,  IVORY,  LEATHER,  AND  TEXTILE  FABRICS. 

Objects  in  ivory,  bone,  and  horn  are  among  the 
rarities  of  our  museums  ; but  we  must  not  for  this 
reason  conclude  that  the  Eg)rptians  did  not  make 
ample  use  of  those  substances.  Horn  is  perishable, 
and  is  eagerly  devoured  by  certain  insects,  which 

* We  have  a considerable  number  of  specimens  of  these  borderings, 
cartouches,  and  painted  tiles  representing  foreign  prisoners,  in  the 
British  Museum  ; but  the  finest  examples  of  the  latter  are  in  the 
Ambras  Collection,  Y’ienna.  For  a highly  interesting  and  scholarly 
description  of  the  remains  found  at  Tell-el-Yahoodeh  in  1870,  see 
Professor  Hayter  Lewis’s  paper  in  vol.  iii.  of  the  Transactions  of  the 
Biblical  Archaeological  Society.  [Translator’s  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


267 


destroy  it  in  no  time.  Bone  and  ivory  soon  deteriorate 
and  become  friable.  The  elephant  was  known  to  the 
Egyptians  from  the  remotest  period.  They  may, 
perhaps,  have  found  it  inhabiting  the  Thebaid  when 
first  they  established  themselves  in  that  part  of  the 
Nile  Valley,  for  as  early  as  the  Fifth  Dynasty,  we 
find  the  pictured  form  of  the  elephant  in  use  as  the 
hieroglyphic  name  of  the  island  of  Elephantine.  Ivory 
in  tusks  and  half  tusks  was  imported  into  Egypt  from 
the  regions  of  the  Upper  Nile.  It  was  some- 
times dyed  green  or  red,  but  was  more  gene- 
rally left  of  its  natural  colour.  It  was  largely 
employed  by  cabinet-makers  for  inlaying  furni- 
ture, as  chairs,  bedsteads,  and  coffers.  Combs, 
dice,  hair-pins,  toilette  ornaments,  delicately 
wrought  spoons  (fig.  237),  collyrium  bottles 
hollowed  out  of  a miniature  column  sur- 
mounted by  a capital,  incense-burners  in  the 
shape  of  a hand  supporting  a bronze  cup  in 
which  the  perfumes  were  burned,  and  boomer- 
angs engraved  with  figures  of  gods  and  fantastic 
animals,  were  also  made  of  ivory.  Some  of  these 
objects  are  works  of  fine  art ; as  for  instance,  J/' 
at  Boulak,  a poignard-handle  in  the  form  of  a lion  ; the 
plaques  in  bas-relief  which  adorn  the  draught-box  of 
one  Tua’i,  who  lived  towards  the  end  of  the  Seventeenth 
Dynasty ; a Fifth  Dynasty  figure,  unfortunately  muti- 
lated, which  yet  retains  traces  of  rose  colour ; and  a 
miniature  statue  of  Abi,  who  died  at  the  time  of  the 
Thirteenth  Dynasty.  This  little  personage,  perched  on 
the  top  of  a lotus-flower  column,  looks  straight  before 
him  with  a majestic  air  which  contrasts  somewhat 


268 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


comically  with  the  size  and  prominence  of  his  ears. 
The  modelling  of  the  figure  is  broad  and  spirited,  and 
will  bear  comparison  with  good  Italian  ivories  of  the 
Renaissance  period. 

Egypt  produces  few  trees,  and  of  these  few  the 
greater  number  are  useless  to  the  sculptor.  The  two 
which  most  abound — namely,  the  date  palm  and  the  Dom 
palm — are  of  too  coarse  a fibre  for  carving,  and  are  too 
unequal  in  texture.  Some  varieties  of  the  sycamore  and 
acacia  are  the  only  trees  of  which  the  grain  is  sufficiently 
fine  and  manageable  to  be  wrought  with  the  chisel. 
Wood  was,  nevertheless,  a favourite  material  for  cheap 
and  rapid  work.  It  was  even  employed  at  times  for 
subjects  of  importance,  such  as  Ka  statues  ; and  the 
Wooden  Man  of  Boulak  shows  with  what  boldness 
and  amplitude  of  style  it  could  be  treated.  But  the 
blocks  and  beams  which  the  Egyptians  had  at  com- 
mand were  seldom  large  enough  for  a statue.  The 
Wooden  Man  himself,  though  but  half  life-size,  consists 
of  a number  of  pieces  held  together  by  square  pegs. 
Hence,  wood-carvers  were  wont  to  treat  their  sub- 
jects upon  such  a scale  as  admitted  of  their  being  cut 
in  one  block,  and  the  statues  of  olden  time  became 
statuettes  under  the  Theban  dynasties.  Art  lost 
nothing  by  the  reduction,  and  more  than  one  of  these 
little  figures  is  comparable  to  the  finest  works  of  the 
ancient  empire.  The  best,  perhaps,  is  at  the  Turin 
Museum,  and  dates  from  the  Twentieth  Dynasty.  It 
represents  a young  girl  whose  only  garment  is  a 
slender  girdle.  She  is  of  that  indefinite  age  when  the 
undeveloped  form  is  almost  as  much  like  that  of  a boy 
as  of  a girl.  The  expression  of  the  head  is  gentle,  yet 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


269 


saucy.  It  is,  in  fact,  across  thirty  centuries  of  time,  a 
portrait  of  one  of  those  graceful  little  maidens  of 
Elephantine,  who,  without  immodesty  or  embarrassment, 
walk  unclothed  in  sight  of  strangers. 

Three  little  wooden  men  in  the 
Boulak  Museum  are  probably  con- 
temporaries of  the 
Turin  figure.  They 
wear  full  dress,  as, 
indeed,  they  should, 
for  one  was  a king’s 
favourite  named 
Hori,  whose  sur- 
name was  Ra.  They 
are  walking  with 
calm  and  measured 
tread,  the  bust 
thrown  forward,  and 
the  head  high.  The 
expression  upon 
their  faces  is  know- 
ing, and  somewhat 
sly.  An  officer  who 
has  retired  on  half- 
pay at  the  Louvre 
(fig.  238)  wears  an 
undress  uniform  of  the  time  of 
Amenhotep  III. ; that  is  to  sa}%  a 
light  wig,  a close-fitting  vest  with 


Fig.  238. 


Fig.  239. 

short  sleeves,  and  a kilt  drawn  tightly  over  the  hips, 
reaching  scarcely  half-way  down  the  thigh,  and  trimmed 
in  front  with  a piece  of  puffing  plaited  longwise.  His 


270 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


companion  is  a priest  (fig.  239)  who  wears  his  hair  in 
rows  of  little  curls  one  above  the  other,  and  is  clad  in 
a long  petticoat  falling  below  the  calf  of  the  leg  and 
spreading  out  in  front  in  a kind  of  plaited  apron.  He 
holds  a sacred  standard  consisting  of  a stout  staff 
surmounted  by  a ram’s  head  crowned  with  the  solar 
disk.  Both  officer  and  priest  are  painted  red  brown, 
with  the  exception  of  the  hair,  which  is  black  ; 

the  cornea  of  the  eyes,  which  is  white ; 
and  the  standard,  which  is  yellow. 
Curiously  enough,  the  little  lady  Na'i, 
who  inhabits  the  same  glass  case,  is  also 
painted  reddish  brown,  instead  of  buff, 
which  was  the  canonical  colour  for 
women  (fig.  240).  She  is  taken  in  a 
close-fitting  garment  trimmed  down  the 
front  with  a band  of  white  embroidery. 
Round  her  neck  she  wears  a necklace 
consisting  of  a triple  row  of  gold  pendants. 
Two  golden  bracelets  adorn  her  wrists, 
and  on  her  head  she  carries  a wig  with 
long  curls.  The  right  arm  hangs  by  her 
side,  the  hand  holding  some  object  now 
lost,  which  was  probably  a mirror.  The 
left  arm  is  raised,  and  with  the  left  hand  she 
presses  a lotus  lily  to  her  breast.  The  body  is 
easy  and  well  formed,  the  figure  indicates  youth, 
the  face  is  open,  smiling,  pleasant,  and  somewhat 
plebeian.  To  modify  the  unwieldy  mass  of  the  head- 
dress was  beyond  the  skill  of  the  artist,  but  the  bust  is 
delicately  and  elegantly  modelled,  the  clinging  garment 
gives  discreet  emphasis  to  the  shape,  and  the  action 


Fig.  240. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


271 


of  the  hand  which  holds  the  flower  is  rendered  with 
grace  and  naturalness.  All  these  are  portraits,  and  as 
the  sitters  were  not  persons  of  august  rank,  we  may 
conclude  that  they  did  not  employ  the  most  fashionable 
artists.  They,  doubtless,  had  recourse  to  more  unpre- 
tending craftsmen  ; but  that  such  craftsmen  were  thus 
highly  trained  in  knowledge  of  form  and  accuracy  of 
execution,  shows  how  strongly  even  the  artizan  was 
influenced  by  the  great  school  of  sculpture  which  then 
flourished  at  Thebes. 

This  influence  becomes  even  more  apparent  when  we 
study  the  knick-knacks  of  the  toilet  table,  and  such  small 
objects  as,  properly  speaking,  come  under  the  head  of 
furniture.  To  pass  in  review  the  hundred  and  one 
little  articles  of  female  ornament  or  luxury  to  which 
the  fancy  of  the  designer  gave  all  kinds  of  ingenious 
and  novel  forms,  would  be  no  light  task.  The  handles 
of  mirrors,  for  instance,  generally  represented  a stem 
of  lotus  or  papyrus  surmounted  by  a full-blown  flower, 
from  the  midst  of  which  rose  a disk  of  polished  metal. 
For  this  design  is  sometimes  substituted  the  figure  of  a 
young  girl,  either  nude,  or  clad  in  a close-fitting  garment, 
who  holds  the  mirror  on  her  head.  The  tops  of  hair-pins 
were  carved  in  the  semblance  of  a coiled  serpent,  or  of 
the  head  of  a jackal,  a dog,  or  a hawk.  The  pin-cushion 
in  which  they  are  placed  is  a hedgehog  or  a tortoise, 
with  holes  pierced  in  a formal  pattern  upon  the  back. 
The  head-rests,  which  served  for  pillows,  were  deco- 
rated with  bas-reliefs  of  subjects  derived  from  the 
myths  of  Bes  and  Sekhet,  the  grimacing  features  of  the 
former  deity  being  carved  on  the  ends  or  on  the  base. 
But  it  is  in  the  carving  of  perfume-spoons  and  kohl- 


2/2 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


bottles  that  the  inventive  skill  of  the  craftsman  is  most 


pomades,  and  the  variously-coloured  preparations  with 
which  both  men  and  women  stained  their 
cheeks,  lips,  eyelids,  nails,  and  palms.  The 
designer  generally  borrowed  his  subjects  from 
the  fauna  or  flora  of  the  Nile  valley.  An 


fish  in  his  mouth  (fig.  241),  the  body  of  the 
fish  forming  the  bowl  of  the  spoon.  Another 
shows  a cartouche  springing  from  a full-blown  Fig.  242- 
lotus ; another,  a lotus  fruit  laid  upon  a bouquet  of 

(flowers  (fig.  242) ; and  here  is  a simple  tri- 
angular bowl,  the  handle  decorated  with  a stem 
and  two  buds  (fig.  243).  The  most  elaborate 
specimens  combine  these  subjects  with  the 
human  figure.  A }Toung  girl,  clad  in  a mere 


girdle,  is  represented  in  the  act  of  swimming 


duck,  the  body  of  which  is  hollowed  out, 


cover.  We  have  also  a young  girl  in  the 
F'g-  243-  Louvre  collection,  but  she  stands  in  a 
maze  of  lotus  plants,  and  is  in  the  act  of  gathering  a 


brilliantly  displayed. 


Fig.  241. 


Not  to  soil  their  fingers, 
the  Egyptians  made  use 
of  spoons  for  essences, 


etui-case  at  Boulak  is  carved  in  the  shape  of 
a couchant  calf,  the  body  being  hollowed  out, 
and  the  head  and  back  lifting  off  to  form 
the  lid.  A spoon  in  the  same  collection  re- 
presents a dog  running  away  with  an  enormous 


while  the  wings,  being  movable,  serve  as  a 


(fig.  244).  Her  head  is  well  lifted  above  the 
water,  and  her  outstretched  arms  support  a 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


273 


bud.  A bunch  of  stems,  from  which  emerge  two  full- 
blown blossoms,  unites  the  handle  to  the  bowl  of  the 
spoon,  which  is  in  reverse  position,  the  larger  end  being 


Fig.  244. 


turned  outwards  and  the  point  inwards.  Elsewhere,  a 
young  girl  (fig.  246)  playing  upon  a long-necked  lute 
as  she  trips  along,  is  framed  in  by  two  flowering  stems. 
Sometimes  the  fair  musician  is  standing  upright  in  a 
tiny  skiff  (fig.  247)  ; and  sometimes  a girl 
bearing  offerings  is  substitued  for  the  lute 
player.  Another  example  re- 
presents a slave  toiling  under 
the  weight  of  an  enormous 
sack.  The  age  and  physi 
ognomy  of  each  of  these  per- 
sonages is  clearly  indicated. 

The  lotus  gatherer  is  of  good 
birth,  as  may  be  seen  by  her 
carefully  plaited  hair  and 
tunic.  The  Theban  ladies 

wore  long  robes ; but  this 
damsel  has  gathered  up  her  F 'B'  246' 
skirts  that  she  may  thread  her  way 
among  the  reeds  without  wetting  her 
garments.  The  two  musicians  and  the  swimming 
girl  belong,  on  the  contrary,  to  an  inferior,  or  servile, 
class.  Two  of  them  wear  only  a girdle,  and 

18 


274 


EGYPTfAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


the  third  has  a short  garment  negligently  fastened. 
The  bearer  of  offerings  (fig.  248)  wears  the  long 
pendent  tresses  distinctive  of  childhood,  and  is  one  of 
those  slender,  growing  girls  of  the  Fellaheen  class  whom 
one  sees  in  such  numbers  on  the  banks  of  the  Nile. 
Her  lack  of  clothing  is,  however,  no  evidence  of  want 
of  birth,  for  not  even  the  children  of  nobility  were  wont 
to  put  on  the  garments  of  their  sex 
before  the  period  of  adolescence.  Lastly, 
the  slave  (fig.  249),  with 
his  thick  lips,  his  high 
shoulders,  his  flat  nose, 
his  heavy,  animal  jaw,  his 
low  brow,  and  his  bare, 
conical  head,  is  evidently 
a caricature  of  some 
foreign  prisoner.  The 
dogged  sullenness  with 
which  he  trudges  under 
his  burden  is  admirably 
caught,  while  the  angu- 
larities of  the  body,  the 
type  of  the  head,  and  the 
general  arrangement  of 
the  parts,  remind  one  of  the  terra-cotta 
grotesques  of  Asia  Minor.  In  these  subjects,  all  the 
minor  details,  the  fruits,  the  flowers,  the  various  kinds 
of  birds,  are  rendered  with  much  truth  and  cleverness. 
Of  the  three  ducks  which  are  tied  by  the  feet  and  slung 
over  the  arms  of  the  girl  bearing  offerings,  two  are  re- 
signed to  their  fate,  and  hang  swinging  with  open  eyes 
and  outstretched  necks ; but  the  third  flaps  her  wings  and 


Fig.  247. 


Fig.  248. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


275 

lifts  her  head  protestingly.  The  two  small  water-fowl 
perched  upon  the  lotus  flowers  listen  placidly  to  the 
lute-player’s  music,  their  beaks  resting  on  their  crops. 
They  have  learned  by  experience  not  to  put  themselves 
out  of  the  way  for  a song,  and  they 
know  that  there  is  nothing  to  fear  from 
a young  girl,  unless  she  is  armed. 

They  are  put  to  flight  in  the  bas- 
reliefs  by  the  mere  sight  of  a bow  and 
arrows,  just  as  a company  of  rooks  is 
put  to  flight  nowadays  by  the  sight  of 
a gun.  The  Egyptians  were  especially 
familiar  with  the  ways  of  animals  and 
birds,  and  reproduced  them  with  mar- 
vellous exactness.  The  habit  of 
minutely  observing  minor  facts  became 
instinctive,  and  it  informed  their  most 
trifling  works  with  that  air  of  reality 
which  strikes  us  so  forcibly  at  the 
present  day. 

Household  furniture  was  no  more 
abundant  in  ancient  Egypt  than  it  is  in 
the  Egypt  of  to-day.  For  the  poor, 
there  were  a few  mats  of  plaited  reeds 
and  some  mud-built  bins  ; for  middle- 
class  folk,  a linen-chest  and  a few 
stools.  It  was  only  the  rich  who 
possessed  bedsteads,  arm-chairs,  divans,  and  tables. 
Most  of  our  modern  furniture,  such  as  cupboards,  side- 
boards, dressers,  and  chests  of  drawers,  was  unknown. 
The  art  of  the  cabinet-maker  was  nevertheless  carried 
to  a high  degree  of  perfection,  from  the  time  of  the 


Fig.  249. 


2 76 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


ancient  dynasties.  Planks  were  dressed  down  with  the 
adze,  morticed,  glued,  joined  together  by  means  of 
pegs  cut  in  hard  wood  or  acacia  thorns  (never  by 
metal  nails),  polished,  and  finally  covered 
with  paintings.  Chests  generally  stand 
upon  four  straight  legs,  and  are  some- 
times thus  raised  at  some  height  from 
Fig.  250.  the  ground.  The  lid  is  flat,  or  rounded 
according  to  a special  curvature  (fig.  250)  much  in 
favour  among  the  Egyptians  of  all  periods.  Some- 
times, though  rarely,  it  is 
gable-shaped,  like  our 
house-roofs  (fig.  251). 

Generally  speaking,  the  lid 
lifts  off  bodily  ; but  it  often 
turns  upon  a peg  inserted 
in  one  of  the  uprights. 

Sometimes,  also,  it  turns 
upon  wooden  pivots  (fig.  252).  The  panels,  which 
are  large  and  admirably  suited  for  decorative  art,  are 
enriched  with  paintings,  or  inlaid  with  ivory,  silver, 
precious  woods,  or  enamelled 
plaques.  It  may  be  that  we 
are  scarcely  in  a position  justly 
to  appraise  the  skill  of  Egyptian 
cabinet-makers,  or  the  variety 
of  designs  produced  at  various 
periods.  Nearly  all  the  furniture 
Fig-  252.  which  has  come  down  to  our 

day  has  been  found  in  tombs,  and,  being  destined  for 
burial  in  the  sepulchre,  may  either  be  of  a character 
exclusively  destined  for  the  use  of  the  mummy,  or 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


2 77 

possibly  a cheap  imitation  of  a more  precious  class  of 
goods. 

The  mummy  was,  in  fact,  the  cabinet-maker’s  best 
customer.  Everywhere  else,  man  took  but  a few 
objects  with  him  into  the  next  world ; but  the  de- 
funct Egyptian  was  content  with  nothing  short  of 
a complete  outfit.  The  mummy-case  alone  was  an 
actual  monument,  in  the  construction  of  which  a whole 
squad  of  workmen  was  employed  (fig.  253).  The 
styles  of  mummy-cases  varied  from  period  to  period. 
Under  the  Memphite  and  first  Theban  empires,  we 
find  only  rectangular  chests  in  sycamore  wood,  flat  at 


top  and  bottom,  and  made  of  many  pieces  joined 
together  by  wooden  pins.  The  pattern  is  not  elegant, 
but  the  decoration  is  very  curious.  The  lid  has  no 
cornice.  Outside,  it  is  inscribed  down  the  middle  with 
a long  column  of  hieroglyphs,  sometimes  merely  written 
in  ink,  sometimes  laid  on  in  colour,  sometimes  carved 
in  incuse  characters  filled  in  with  some  kind  of 
bluish  paste.  The  inscription  records  only  the  name 
and  titles  of  the  deceased,  accompanied  now  and  then 
by  a short  form  of  prayer  in  his  favour.  The  inside 
is  covered  with  a thick  coat  of  stucco  or  whitewash. 
Upon  this  surface,  the  seventeenth  chapter  of  The  Book 


278 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


of  the  Dead  was  generally  written  in  red  and  black 
inks,  and  in  fine  cursive  hieroglyphs.  The  body  of 
the  chest  is  made  with  three  horizontal  planks  for  the 
bottom,  and  eight  vertical  planks,  placed  two  and  two, 
for  the  four  sides.  The  outside  is  sometimes  decorated 
with  long  strips  of  various  colours  ending  in  interlaced 
lotus-leaves,  such  as  are  seen  on  stone  sarcophagi.  More 
frequently,  it  is  ornamented  on  the  left  side  with  two  wide- 
open  eyes  and  two  monumental  doors,  and  on  the  right 
with  three  doors  exactly  like  those  seen  in  contemporary 
catacombs.  The  sarcophagus  is  in  truth  the  house  of 
the  deceased  ; and,  being  his  house,  its  four  walls  were 
bound  to  contain  an  epitome  of  the  prayers  and 
tableaux  which  covered  the  walls  of  his  tomb.  The 
necessary  formulae  and  pictured  scenes  were,  therefore, 
reproduced  inside,  nearly  in  the  same  order  in  which 
they  appear  in  the  mastabas.  Each  side  is  divided  in 
three  registers,  each  register  containing  a dedication 
in  the  name  of  the  deceased,  or  representations  of 
objects  belonging  to  him,  or  such  texts  from  the  Ritual 
as  need  to  be  repeated  for  his  benefit.  Skilfully 
composed,  and  painted  upon  a background  in  imitation 
of  some  precious  wood,  the  whole  forms  a boldly- 
designed  and  harmoniously-coloured  picture.  The 
cabinet-maker’s  share  of  the  work  was  the  lightest,  and 
the  long  boxes  in  which  the  dead  of  the  earliest  period 
were  buried  made  no  great  demand  upon  his  skill. 
This,  however,  was  not  the  case  when  in  later  times 
the  sarcophagus  came  to  be  fashioned  in  the  likeness  of 
the  human  body.  Of  this  style  we  have  two  leading 
types.  In  the  most  ancient,  the  mummy  serves  as  the 
model  for  his  case.  His  outstretched  feet  and  legs  are 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


279 


in  one.  The  form  of  the  knee,  the  swell  of  the  calf, 
the  contours  of  the  thigh  and  the  trunk,  are  summarily 
indicated,  and  are,  as  it  were,  vaguely  modelled  under 
the  wood.  The  head,  apparently  the  only  living  part 
of  this  inert  body,  is  wrought  out  in  the  round.  The 
dead  man  is  in  this  wise  imprisoned  in  a kind  of  statue 
of  himself ; and  this  statue  is  so  well  balanced  that  it 
can  stand  on  its  feet  if  required,  as  upon  a pedestal. 
In  the  other  type  of  sarcophagus,  the  deceased  lies  at 
full  length  upon  his  tomb,  and  his  figure,  sculptured  in 
the  round,  serves  as  the  lid  of  his  mummy-case.  On 
his  head  is  seen  the  ponderous  wig  of  the  period.  A 
white  linen  vest  and  a long  petticoat  cover  his  chest 
and  legs.  His  feet  are  shod  with  elegant  sandals. 
His  arms  lie  straight  along  his  sides,  or  are  folded 
upon  his  breast,  the  hands  grasping  various  emblems, 
as  the  “ ankh,”  * the  belt-buckle, f the  “Tat;”J 
or,  as  in  the  case  of  the  wife  of  Sennotmou  at 
Boulak,  a garland  of  ivy.  This  mummiform  type  of 
sarcophagus  is  rarely  met  with  under  the  Memphite 
dynasties,  though  Menkara,  the  Mycerinus  of  the 
Greeks,  affords  a memorable  example.  Under  the 
Eleventh  Dynasty,  the  mummy-case  is  frequently 
but  a hollowed  tree-trunk,  roughly  sculptured  out- 
side, with  a head  at  one  end  and  feet  at  the  other. 
The  face  is  daubed  with  bright  colours,  yellow,  red, 
and  green ; the  wig  and  head-dress  are  striped  with 
black  and  blue,  and  an  elaborate  collar  is  depicted  on 

* The  ankh , sometimes  called  the  “Tau-Cross,”  was  an  amulet 
emblematic  of  life  eternal. 

fThe  “belt-buckle,’’  or  Ta  amulet,  placed  the  deceased  under  the 
protection  of  Isis. 

JThe  Tat  amulet  was  the  emblem  of  stability.  [Translator’s  note.] 


280 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


the  breast.  The  rest  of  the  case  is  either  covered  with 
the  long,  gilded  wings  of  Isis  and  Nephthys,  or  covered 
with  a uniform  tint  of  white  or  yellow,  and  sparsely 
decorated  with  symbolic  figures,  or  columns  of  hiero- 
glyphs painted  blue  and  black.  Among  those  sarco- 
phagi belonging  to  kings  of  the  Seventeenth  Dynasty 


Fig.  254. 

which  I recovered  from  Dayr-el-Baharee,  the  most 
highly  finished  belonged  to  this  type,  and  were 
only  remarkable  for  the  really  extraordinary  skill  with 
which  the  craftsman  had  reproduced  the  features 
of  the  deceased  sovereigns.  The  mask  of  Ahmes  I., 
that  of  Amenhotep  I.,  and  that  of  Thothmes  II., 
are  masterpieces  in  their  way.  The  mask  of 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


Rameses  II.  shows  no  sign  of  paint,  except  a black 
line  which  accentuates  the  form  of  the  eye.  The 
face  is  doubtless  modelled  in  the 
likeness  of  the  Pharaoh  Her-Hor, 
who  restored  the  funerary  outfit  of 
his  puissant  ancestor,  and  it  will 
almost  bear  comparison  with  the 
best  works  of  contemporary  sculpture 
(fig.  254).  Two  mummy-cases  found 
in  the  same  place — namely,  those  of 
Queen  Ahmes-Nefertari  and  her 
daughter,  Aah-hotep  II. — are  of 
gigantic  size,  and  measure  more  than 
ten  and  a half  feet  in  height  (fig.  255). 

Standing  upright,  they  might  almost 
be  taken  for  two  of  the  caryatid  sta- 
tues from  the  first  court  at  Medinet 
Haboo,  though  on  a smaller  scale. 

The  bodies  are  represented  as  ban- 
daged, and  but  vaguely  indicate  the 
contours  of  the  human  form.  The 
shoulders  and  bust  of  each  are 
covered  with  a kind  of  network  in 
relief,  every  mesh  standing  out  in 
blue  upon  a yellow  ground.  The 
hands  emerge  from  this  mantle,  are 
crossed  upon  the  breast,  and  grasp 
the  “ Ankh,”  or  Tau-cross,  symbolic 
of  eternal  life.  The  heads  are  por- 
traits. The  faces  are  round,  the  eyes 
large,  the  expression  mild  and  charac- 
terless. Each  is  crowned  with  the  flat-topped  cap  and 


Fig.  255. 

Mummy-case  of  Queen 
Ahmes-Nefertari. 


282 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


lofty  plumes  of  Amen  or  Maut.  We  cannot  but  wonder 
for  what  reason  these  huge  receptacles  were  made.  The 
two  queens  were  small  of  stature,  and  their  mummies — 
which  were  well-nigh  lost  in  the  cases — had  to  be  packed 
round  with  an  immense  quantity  of  rags,  to  prevent 
them  from  shifting,  and  becoming  injured.  Apart  from 
their  abnormal  size,  these  cases  are  characterised  by 
the  same  simplicity  which  distinguishes  other  mummy- 
cases  of  royal  or  private  persons  of  the  same  period. 
Towards  the  middle  of  the  Nineteenth  Dynasty,  the 
fashion  changed.  The  single  mummy-case,  soberly 
decorated,  was  superseded  by  two,  three,  and  even 
four  cases,  fitting  the  one  into  the  other,  and  covered 
with  paintings  and  inscriptions.  Sometimes  the  outer 
receptacle  is  a sarcophagus  with  convex  lid  and  square 
ears,  upon  which  the  deceased  is  pictured  over  and  over 
again  upon  a white  ground,  in  adoration  before  the 
gods  of  the  Osirian  cycle.  When,  however,  it  is 
shaped  in  human  form,  it  retains  somewhat  of  the  old 
simplicity.  The  face  is  painted  ; a collar  is  represented 
on  the  chest ; a band  of  hieroglyphs  extends  down 
the  whole  length  of  the  body  to  the  feet ; and  the  rest 
is  in  one  uniform  tone  of  black,  brown,  or  dark  yellow. 
The  inner  cases  were  extravagantly  rich,  the  hands  and 
faces  being  red,  rose-coloured,  or  gilded  ; the  jewellery 
painted,  or  sometimes  imitated  by  means  of  small  mor- 
sels of  enamel  encrusted  in  the  wood-work  ; the  sur- 
faces frequently  covered  with  many-coloured  scenes 
and  legends,  and  the  whole  heightened  by  means  of 
the  yellow  varnish  already  mentioned.  The  lavish 
ornamentation  of  this  period  is  in  striking  contrast  with 
the  sobriety  of  earlier  times  ; but  in  order  to  grasp 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


283 


the  reason  of  this  change,  one  must  go  to  Thebes,  and 
visit  the  actual  sepulchres  of  the  dead.  The  kings  and 
private  persons  of  the  great  conquering  dynasties* 
devoted  their  energies,  and  all  the  means  at  their 
disposal,  to  the  excavation  of  catacombs.  The  walls  of 
those  catacombs  were  covered  with  sculptures  and 
paintings.  The  sarcophagus  was  cut  in  one  enormous 
block  of  granite  or  alabaster,  and  admirably  wrought. 
It  was  therefore  of  little  moment  if  the  wooden  coffin  in 
which  the  mummy  reposed  were  very  simply  decorated. 
But  the  Egyptians  of  the  decadence,  and  their  rulers, 
had  not  the  wealth  of  Egypt  and  the  spoils  of  neigh- 
bouring countries  at  command.  They  were  poor ; and 
the  slenderness  of  their  resources  debarred  them  from 
great  undertakings.  They  for  the  most  part  gave  up  the 
preparation  of  magnificent  tombs,  and  employed  such 
wealth  as  remained  to  them  in  the  fabrication  of  fine 
mummy-cases  carved  in  sycamore  wood.  The  beauty 
of  their  coffins,  therefore,  but  affords  an  additional  proof 
of  their  weakness  and  poverty.  When  for  a few  cen- 
turies the  Sa'ite  princes  had  succeeded  in  re-establishing 
the  prosperity  of  the  country,  stone  sarcophagi  came  once 
more  into  requisition,  and  the  wooden  coffin  reverted  to 
somewhat  of  the  simplicity  of  the  great  period.  But 
this  Renaissance  was  not  destined  to  last.  The  Mace- 
donian conquest  brought  back  the  same  revolution  in 
funerary  fashions  which  followed  the  fall  of  the  Rames- 
sides.  Double  and  triple  mummy  cases,  over-painted 
and  over-gilded,  were  again  in  demand ; and  if  the 
craftsmen  of  Graeco-Roman  time  who  attired  the  dead 

* That  is,  the  Eighteenth  and  Nineteenth  Dynasties.  [Translator’s 
note."] 


284 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/EOLOGY. 


of  Ekhmeem  for  their  last  resting-places  were  less  skil- 
ful than  those  of  earlier  date,  their  bad  taste  was,  at  all 
events,  not  surpassed  by  the  Theban  coffin-makers  who 
lived  and  worked  under  the  latest  princes  of  the  royal 
line  of  Rameses. 

The  remainder  of  the  funerary  outfit  supplied  the 
cabinet-maker  with  as  much  work  as  the  coffin-maker. 
Boxes  of  various  shapes  and  sizes  were  required  for  the 
wardrobe  of  the  mummy,  for  his  viscera,  and  for  his 
funerary  statuettes.  He  must  also  have  tables  for  his 
meals,  stools,  chairs,  a bed  to  lie  upon,  a sledge  to 
convey  him  to  the  tomb,  and  sometimes  even  a war- 
chariot  and  a carriage  in  which  to  take  the  air.* 
The  boxes  for  canopic  vases,  funerary  statuettes,  and 
libation-vases,  are  divided  in  several  compartments.  A 
couchant  jackal  is  sometimes  placed  on  the  top,  and 
serves  for  a handle  by  which  to  take  off  the  lid. 
Each  box  was  provided  with  its  own  little  sledge,  upon 
which  it  was  drawn  in  the  funeral  procession  on  the 
day  of  burial.  Beds  are  not  very  uncommon.  Many 
are  identical  in  structure  with  the  Nubian  angarebs  of 
the  present  day,  and  consist  merely  of  some  coarse 
fabric,  or  of  interlaced  strips  of  leather,  stretched  on 
a plain  wooden  frame.  Few  exceed  fifty-six  inches  in 
ength  ; the  sleeper,  therefore,  could  never  lie  out- 
stretched, but  must  perforce  assume  a doubled-up  posi- 
tion. The  frame  is  generally  horizontal,  but  sometimes 
it  slopes  slightly  downwards  from  the  head  to  the  foot. 
It  was  often  raised  to  a considerable  height  above  the 


* There  is  a fine  specimen  of  one  of  these  sledges  in  the  Leyden 
Museum,  and  the  Florentine  Museum  contains  a celebrated  Egyptian 
war-chariot  in  fine  preservation.  [Translator’s  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


285 


level  of  the  floor,  and  a stool,  or  a little  portable  set  of 
steps,  was  used  in  mounting  it.  These  details  would  have 
been  known  to  us  only  by  the  wall-paintings,  had  I not 
myself  discovered  two  perfect  specimens  in  1884  and 
1885  ; one  at  Thebes,  in  a tomb  of  the  Thirteenth 
Dynasty,  and  the  other  at  Ekhmeem,  in  the  Graeco- 
Roman  necropolis.  In  the  former,  two  accommodating 


Fig.  256. 


lions  have  elongated  their  bodies  to  form  the  framework, 
their  heads  doing  duty  for  the  head  of  the  bed,  and 
their  tails  being  curled  up  under  the  feet  of  the  sleeper. 
The  bed  is  surmounted  by  a kind  of  canopy,  under 
which  the  mummy  lay  in  state.  Rhind  had  already 
found  a similar  canopy,  which  is  now  in  the  Museum 
of  Edinburgh*  (fig.  256).  In  shape  it  is  a temple, 
the  rounded  roof  being  supported  by  elegant  colonnettes 


* See  the  coloured  frontispiece  to  Thebes ; i/s  Tombs  and  their 
Tenants,  by  A.  H.  Rhind.  1862.  [Translator’s  note.] 


286 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


of  painted  wood.  A doorway  guarded  by  serpents  is 
supposed  to  give  access  to  the  miniature  edifice.  Three 
winged  discs,  each  larger  than  the  one  below  it,  adorn 
three  superimposed  cornices  above  the  door,  the  whole 
frontage  being  surmounted  by  a row  of  erect  uraei, 
crowned  with  the  solar  disk.  The  canopy  belonging 
to  the  Thirteenth  Dynasty  bed  is  much  more  simple, 
being  a mere  balustrade  in  cut  and  painted  wood,  in 
imitation  of  the  water-plant  pattern  with  which  temple 
walls  were  decorated  ; the  whole  crowned  with  an  ordi- 
nary cornice.  In  the  bed  of  Graeco-Roman  date  (fig.  257), 


Fig.  257. 


carved  and  painted  figures  of  the  goddess  Ma,  sitting 
with  her  feather  on  her  knee,  are  substituted  for  the 
customary  balustrades.  Isis  and  Nephthys  stand  with 
their  winged  arms  outstretched  at  the  head  and  foot. 
The  roof  is  open,  save  for  a row  of  vultures  hovering 
above  the  mummy ; while  two  kneeling  statuettes  of 
Isis  and  Nephthys  weep  over  it,  one  at  each  end.  The 
sledges  upon  which  mummies  were  dragged  to  the 
sepulchre  were  also  furnished  with  canopies,  but  in  a 
totally  different  style.  The  sledge  canopy  is  a panelled 
shrine,  like  those  which  I discovered  in  1886,  in  the 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


287 


If  light  was 


tomb  of  Sennotmou  at  Koornet  Murraee. 
admitted,  it  came  through  a square  opening,  showing 
the  head  of  the  mummy  within.  Wilkinson  gives  an 
illustration  of  a 


sledge  canopy  of 
this  kind,  from 
the  wall  paintings 
of  a Theban  tomb 
(fig.  258).  The 
panels  were  al- 
ways made  to 
slide.  As  soon  as 
the  mummy  was 
laid  upon  his  sledge,  the  panels  were  closed,  the  corniced 
roof  placed  over  all,  and  the  whole  closed  in.  With 
regard  to  chairs,  many  of  those  in  the  Louvre  and  the 

British  Museum  were  made 


about  the  time  of  the 
Eleventh  Dynasty.  These 
are  not  the  least  beautiful 
specimens  which  have  come 
down  to  us,  one  in  par- 
ticular (fig.  259)  having 
preserved  an  extraordinary 
brilliancy  of  colour.  The 
framework,  formerly  fitted 
with  a seat  of  strong 
Fig.  259.  netting,  was  originally  sup- 

ported on  four  legs  with  lions’  feet.  The  back  is 
ornamented  with  two  lotus  flowers,  and  with  a 
row  of  lozenges  inlaid  in  ivory  and  ebony  upon  a red 
ground.  Stools  of  similar  workmanship  (fig.  260),  and 


288 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


which  are  in  the  form  of  a 
goose’s  head,  may  be  seen 
in  all  museums.  Pharaohs 
and  persons  of  high  rank 
affected  more  elaborate  de- 
signs. Their  seats  were 
sometimes  raised  very  high, 
the  arms  being  carved  to 
resemble  running  lions,  and 
the  lower  supports  being 
prisoners  of  war,  bound  back  to 
back  (fig.  261).  A footboard  in 
front  served  as  a step  to  mount 
by,  and  as  a footstool  when 
seated.  Up  to  the  present  time, 
we  have  found  no  specimens  of 
this  kind  of  seat.* 

We  learn  from  the  tomb  paint- 
ings that  netted  or  cane-bottomed 
chairs  were  covered  with  stuffed 
seats  and  richly  worked  cushions. 

These  cushions  and  stuffed  seats 
have  perished,  but  it  is  to  be  con- 
cluded that  they  were  covered 
with  tapestry.  Tapestry  was  undoubtedly  known  to 


Fig.  261. 


folding  stools,  the  feet  of 


Fig.  260. 


* Since  the  publication  of  this  work  in  the  original  French,  a very 
splendid  specimen  of  a royal  Egyptian  chair  of  state,  the  property  of 
Jesse  Haworth,  Esq.,  has  been  placed  on  view  at  the  Manchester 
Jubilee  Exhibition.  It  is  made  of  dark  wood,  apparently  rosewood  ; 
the  legs  being  shaped  like  bull's  legs,  having  silver  hoofs,  and  a solid 
gold  cobra  snake  twining  round  each  leg.  The  arm-pieces  are  of  light 
wood  with  cobra  snakes  carved  upon  the  flat  in  low  relief,  each  snake 
covered  with  hundreds  of  small  silver  annulets,  to  represent  the 
markings  of  the  reptile.  For  a more  minute  description  see  The 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


289 


the  Egyptians,  and  a bas-relief  subject  at  Beni- 
Hassan  (fig.  262)  * shows  the  process  of  weaving 
it.  The  frame,  which  is  of  the  simplest  structure, 
resembles  that  now  in  use  among  the  weavers  of 
Ekhmeem.  It  is  horizontal,  and  is  formed  of  two 
slender  cylinders,  or  rather  of  two  rods,  about  fifty-four 
inches  apart,  each  held  in  place  by  two  large  pegs 
driven  into  the  ground  about  three  feet  distant  from 


Fig.  262. 


each  other.  The  warps,  of  . the  chain  were  strongly 
fastened,,  then  rolled,  round  the,  top  .cylinder  till  they 
were  stretched  sufficiently  tight.  . Mill  sticks  placed  at 
certain  distances  facilitated  the  insertion  of  the  needles 
which  carried  the  thread.  As  in  the  Gobelins  factory, 
the  work  was  begun  from  the  bottom.  The  texture  was 
regulated  and  equalised  by  means  of  a coarse  comb, 
and  was  rolled  upon  the  lower  cylinder  as  it  increased 

Times,  June  22nd,  1887.  This  chair,  dated  by  a fragment  of  a royal 
cartouche,  belonged  to  Queen  Hatshepsu,  of  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty. 
[Translator’s  note.] 

* In  this  cut,  as  well  as  in  the  next,  the  loom  is  represented  as  if 
upright ; but  it  is  supposed  to  be  extended  on  the  ground.  [Trans- 
lator's note.] 


19 


290 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


in  length.  Hangings  and  carpets  were  woven  in  this 
manner ; some  with  figures,  others  with  geometrical 
designs,  zigzags,  and  chequers  (fig.  263).  A careful 
examination  of  the  monuments  has,  however,  convinced 
me  that  most  of  the  subjects  hitherto  supposed  to  repre- 
sent examples  of  tapestry  represent,  in  fact,  examples  of 
cut  and  painted  leather.  The  leather-worker’s  craft 
flourished  in  ancient  Egypt.  Few  museums  are 
without  a pair  of  leather  sandals,  or  a specimen  of 
mummy  braces  with  ends  of  stamped  leather  bearing 


Fig.  263. 

the  effigy  of  a god,  a Pharaoh,  a hieroglyphic  legend,  a 
rosette,  or  perhaps  all  combined.  These  little  relics 
are  not  older  than  the  time  of  the  priest-kings,  or 
the  earlier  Bubastites.  It  is  to  the  same  period  that 
we  must  attribute  the  great  cut-leather  canopy  in  the 
Boulak  Museum.  The  catafalque  upon  which  the 
mummy  was  laid  when  transported  from  the  mortuary 
establishment  to  the  tomb,  was  frequently  adorned  with 
a covering  made  of  stuff  or  soft  leather.  Sometimes  the 
sidepieces  hung  down,  and  sometimes  they  were  drawn 
aside  with  bands,  like  curtains,  and  showed  the  coffin. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


291 


The  canopy  of  Dayr-el-Baharee  was  made  for  the 
Princess  Isi-em-Kheb,  daughter  of  the  High  Priest 
Masahirti,  wife  of  the  High  Priest 
Menkheperra,  and  mother  of  the 
High  Priest  Pinotem  III.  The 
centrepiece,  in  shape  an  oblong 
square,  is  divided  into  three  bands 
of  sky-blue  leather,  now  faded  to 
pearl-grey.  The  two  side-pieces 
are  sprinkled  with  yellow  stars. 

Upon  the  middle  piece  are  rows  of 
vultures,  whose  outspread  wings 
protect  the  mummy.  Four  other 
pieces  covered  with  red  and  green 
chequers  are  attached  to  the  ends 
and  sides.  The  longer  pieces  which 
hung  over  the  sides  are  united  to 
the  centre-piece  by  an  ornamental 
bordering.  On  the  right,  scarabaei 
with  extended  wings  alternate  with 
the  cartouches  of  King  Pinotem 
II.,  and  are  surmounted  by  a 
lance-head  frieze.  On  the  left  side, 
the  pattern  is  more  complicated 
(fig.  264).  In  the  centre  we  see  a 
bunch  of  lotus  lilies  flanked  by 
royal  cartouches.  Next  come  two 
antelopes,  each  kneeling  upon  a 
basket ; then  two  bouquets  of 
papyrus  ; then  two  more  scarabaei, 
similar  to  those  upon  the  other  border.  The  lance-head 
frieze  finishes  it  above,  as  on  the  opposite  side.  The 


292 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


technical  process  is  very  curious.  The  hieroglyphs  and 
figures  were  cut  out  from  large  pieces  of  leather  ; then, 
under  the  open  spaces  thus  left,  were  sewn  thongs  of 
leather  of  whatever  colour  was  required  for  those  orna- 
ments or  hieroglyphs.  Finally,  in  order  to  hide  the  patch- 
work  effect  presented  at  the  back,  the  whole  was  lined 
with  long  strips  of  white,  or  light  yellow,  leather.  Despite 


Fig.  265. 


the  difficulties  of  treatment  which  this  work  presented, 
the  result  is  most  remarkable.*  The  outlines  of  the 
gazelles,  scarabaei,  and  flowers  are  as  clean-cut  and  as 
elegant  as  if  drawn  with  the  pen  upon  a wall-surface  or 
a page  of  papyrus.  The  choice  of  subjects  is  happy, 
and  the  colours  employed  are  both  lively  and  harmonious. 

* For  a chromolithographic  reproduction  of  this  work  as  a whole, 
with  drawings  of  the  separate  parts,  facsimiles  of  the  inscriptions, 
etc.,  see  “The  Funeral  Tent  of  an  Egyptian  Queen,”  by  H.  Villiers 
Stuart. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


293 


The  craftsmen  who  designed  and  executed  the  canopy 
of  Isi-em-Kheb  had  profited  by  a long  experience  of 
this  system  of  decoration,  and  of  the  kind  of  patterns 
suitable  to  the  material.  For  my  own  part,  I have  not 
the  slightest  doubt  that  the  cushions  of  chairs  and  royal 
couches,  and  the  sails  of  funerary  and  sacred  boats  used 
for  the  transport  of  mummies  and  divine  images,  were 


Fig.  266. 


most  frequently  made  in  leather-work.  The  chequer- 
patterned  sail  represented  in  one  of  the  boat  subjects 
painted  on  the  wall  of  a chamber  in  the  tomb  of 
Rameses  III.  (fig.  265),  might  be  mistaken  for  one  of 
the  side  pieces  of  the  canopy  at  Boulak.  The  vultures 
and  fantastic  birds  depicted  upon  the  sails  of  another 
boat  (fig.  266)  are  neither  more  strange  nor  more 
difficult  to  make  in  cut  leather  than  the  vultures  and 
gazelles  of  Isi-em-Kheb. 


294 


EGYPTIAN  ARCII/EOLOGY. 


We  have  it  upon  the  authority  of  ancient  writers 
that  the  Egyptians  of  olden  time  embroidered  as 
skilfully  as  those  of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  surcoats 
given  by  Amasis,  one  to  the  Lacedaemonians,  and  the 
other  to  the  temple  of  Athena  at  Lindos,  -were  of  linen 
embroidered  with  figures  of  animals  in  gold  thread  and 
purple,  each  thread  consisting  of  three  hundred  and 
sixty-five  distinct  filaments.  To  go  back  to  a still 
earlier  period,  the  monumental  tableaux  show  portraits 
of  the  Pharaohs  wearing  garments  with  borders,  either 
woven  or  embroidered,  or  done  in  applique  work. 
The  most  simple  patterns  consist  of  one  or  more 
stripes  of  brilliant  colour  parallel  with  the  edge  of  the 
material.  Elsewhere  we  see  palm  patterns,  or  rows 
of  disks  and  points,  leaf-patterns,  meanders,  and  even, 
here  and  there,  figures  of  men,  gods,  or  animals, 
worked  most  probably  with  the  needle.  None  of  the 
textile  materials  yet  found  upon  royal  mummies  are  thus 
decorated ; we  are  therefore  unable  to  pronounce  upon 
the  quality  of  this  work,  or  the  method  employed  in  its 
production.  Once  only,  upon  the  body  of  one  of  the 
Dayr-el-Baharee  princesses,  did  I find  a royal  cartouche 
embroidered  in  pale  rose-colour.  The  Egyptians  of 
the  best  periods  seem  to  have  attached  special  value  to 
plain  stuffs,  and  especially  to  white  ones.  These  they 
wove  with  marvellous  skill,  and  upon  looms  in  every 
respect  identical  with  those  used  in  tapestry  work. 
Those  portions  of  the  winding  sheet  of  Thothmes  III. 
which  enfolded  the  royal  hands  and  arms,  are  as  fine 
as  the  finest  India  muslin,  and  as  fairly  merit  the  name 
of  “ woven  air  ” as  the  gauzes  of  the  island  of  Cos. 
This,  of  course,  is  a mere  question  of  manufacture, 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


295 


apart  from  the  domain  of  art.  Embroideries  and 
tapestries  were  not  commonly  used  in  Egypt  till  about 
the  end  of  the  Persian  period,  or  the  beginning  of 
the  period  of  Greek  rule.  Alexandria  became  partly 
peopled  by  Phoenician,  Syrian,  and  Jewish  colonists, 
who  brought  with  them  the  methods  of  manufacture 
peculiar  to  their  own  countries,  and  founded  workshops 
which  soon  developed  into  flourishing  establishments. 
It  is  to  the  Alexandrians  that  Pliny  ascribes  the 
invention  of  weaving  with  several  warps,  thus  pro- 
ducing the  stuff  called  brocades  ( polymita ) ; and 
in  the  time  of  the  first  Caesars,  it  was  already  a 
recognised  fact  that  “ the  needle  of  Babylon  was 
henceforth  surpassed  by  the  comb  of  the  Nile.”  The 
Alexandrian  tapestries  wrere  not  made  after  exclusively 
geometrical  designs,  like  the  products  of  the  old 
Egyptian  looms  ; but,  according  to  the  testimony  of 
the  ancients,  were  enriched  with  figures  of  animals,  and 
even  of  men.  Of  the  masterpieces  which  adorned  the 
palaces  of  the  Ptolemies  no  specimens  remain.  A few 
fragments  which  may  be  attributed  to  the  later  Roman 
time  have,  however,  been  found  in  Egypt,  such  as  the 
piece  with  the  boy  and  goose  described  by  Wilkinson, 
and  a piece  representing  marine  divinities  bought 
by  myself  at  Coptos.*  The  numerous  embroidered 
winding  sheets  with  woven  borders  which  have 
recently  been  discovered  near  Ekhmeem,  and  in  the 


* An  unusually  fine  specimen  of  carpet,  or  tapestry  work  from 
Ekhmeem,  representing  Cupids  rowing  in  papyrus  skiff's,  landscapes, 
etc.,  has  recently  been  presented  to  the  British  Museum  by  the 
Rev.  G.  J.  Chester.  The  tapestry  found  at  Ekhmeem  is,  however, 
all  of  the  Christian  period,  and  this  specimen  probably  dates  from 
about  a.d.  700  or  a.d.  600.  [Translator’s  note.] 


296 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


Fayoom,  are  nearly  all  from  Coptic  tombs,  and  are 
more  nearly  akin  to  Byzantine  art  than  to  the  art 
of  Egypt. 


3. METALS. 

The  Egyptians  classified  metals  under  two  heads — 
namely,  the  noble  metals,  as  gold,  electrum,  and  silver ; 
and  the  base  metals,  as  copper,  iron,  lead,  and,  at  a 
later  period,  tin.  The  two  lists  are  divided  by  the 
mention  of  certain  kinds  of  precious  stones,  such  as 
lapis  lazuli  and  malachite. 

Iron  was  reserved  for  weapons  of  war,  and  tools 
in  use  for  hard  substances,  such  as  sculptors’  and 
masons’  chisels,  axe  and  adze  heads,  knife-blades,  and 
saws.  Lead  was  comparatively  useless,  but  was 
sometimes  used  for  inlaying  temple-doors,  coffers,  and 
furniture.  Also  small  statuettes  of  gods  were  occa- 
sionally made  in  this  metal,  especially  those  of  Osiris 
and  Anubis.  Copper  was  too  yielding  to  be  available 
for  objects  in  current  use  ; bronze,  therefore,  was 
the  favourite  metal  of  the  Egyptians.  Though  often 
affirmed,  it  is  not  true  that  they  succeeded  in  temper- 
ing bronze  so  that  it  became  as  hard  as  iron  or  steel ; 
but  by  varying  the  constituents  and  their  relative 
proportions,  they  were  able  to  give  it  a variety  of 
very  different  qualities.  Most  of  the  objects  hitherto 
analysed  have  yielded  precisely  the  same  quantities 
of  copper  and  tin  commonly  used  by  the  bronze 
founders  of  the  present  day.  Those  analysed  by 
Vauquelin  in  1825  contained  84  per  cent,  of  copper, 
14  per  cent,  of  tin,  and  1 per  cent,  of  iron  and  other 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


297 


substances.  A chisel  brought  from  Egypt  by  Sir 
Gardner  Wilkinson  contained  only  from  5 to  9 per 
cent,  of  tin,  1 per  cent,  of  iron,  and  94  of  copper. 
Certain  fragments  of  statuettes  and  mirrors  more 
recently  subjected  to  analysis  have  yielded  a notable 
quantity  of  gold  and  silver,  thus  corresponding  with 
the  bronzes  of  Corinth.  Other  specimens  resemble 
brass,  both  in  their  colour  and  substance.  Many  of  the 
best  Egyptian  bronzes  offer  a surprising  resistance  to 
damp,  and  oxidise  with  difficulty.  While  yet  hot  from 
the  mould,  they  were  rubbed  with  some  kind  of  resinous 
varnish  which  filled  up  the  pores  and  deposited  an 
unalterable  patina  upon  the  surface.  Each  kind  of 
bronze  had  its  special  use.  The  ordinary  bronze  was 
employed  for  weapons  and  common  amulets ; the 
brazen  alloys  served  for  household  utensils ; the 
bronzes  mixed  with  gold  and  silver  were  destined  only 
for  mirrors,  costly  weapons,  and  statuettes  of  value. 
In  none  of  the  tomb-paintings  which  I have  seen  is 
there  any  representation  of  bronze-founding  or  bronze- 
working ; but  this  omission  is  easily  supplemented  by 
the  objects  themselves.  Tools,  arms,  rings,  and  cheap 
vases  were  sometimes  forged,  and  sometimes  cast  whole 
in  moulds  of  hard  clay  or  stone.  Works  of  art  were 
cast  in  one  or  several  pieces  according  to  circum- 
stances ; the  parts  were  then  united,  soldered,  and 
retouched  with  the  burin.  The  method  most  fre- 
quently employed  was  to  introduce  a core  of  mixed 
clay  and  charcoal,  or  sand,  into  the  mould,  which 
roughly  reproduced  the  external  modelling.  The  layer 
of  metal  outside  this  core  was  often  so  thin  that  it 
would  have  yielded  to  any  moderate  pressure,  had  they 


298 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH.EOLOGY. 


Fig.  267. 


not  taken  the  precaution  to  consolidate  it  by  having 
the  core  for  a support. 

Domestic  utensils  and  small  household  instruments 
were  mostly  made  in  bronze.  Such  objects  are  ex- 
hibited by  thousands  in  our  museums,  and  frequently 
figure  in  bas-reliefs  and  mural  paintings.  Art  and 
trade  were  not  incompatible  in  Egypt  ; 
and  even  the  coppersmith  sought  to 
give  elegance  of  form,  and  to  add  orna- 
ments in  a good  style,  to  the  humblest 
of  his  works.  The  saucepan  in  which 
the  cook  of  Rameses  III.  concocted  his 
masterpieces  is  supported  on  lions’ 
feet.  Here  is  a hot-water  jug  which  looks  as  if  it  were 
precisely  like  its  modern  successors  (fig.  267)  ; but  on 
a closer  examination  we  shall  find  that  the  handle  is  a 
full-blown  lotus,  the  petals,  which  are  bent  over  at  an 
angle  to  the  stalk,  resting  against  the  edge  of  the  neck 
(fig.  268).  The  handles  of  knives  and  spoons  are  almost 
always  in  the  form  of  a duck’s  or  goose’s 
neck,  slightly  curved.  The  bowl  is  some- 
times fashioned  like  an  animal — as,  for 
instance,  a gazelle  ready  bound  for  the 
sacrifice  (fig.  269).*  On  the  hilt  of  a 
sabre  we  find  a little  crouching  jackal  ; 
and  the  larger  limb  of  a pair  of  scissors 
in  the  Boulak  Museum  is  made  in  the  likeness  of  an 
Asiatic  captive,  his  arms  tied  behind  his  back.  A lotus 
leaf  forms  the  disc  of  a mirror,  and  its  stem  is  the  handle. 


* This,  however,  is  a lamp  with  hook  for  suspension.  Mr.  Petrie 
found  a somewhat  similar  lamp  in  the  cellar  of  Bakakhiu’s  house  at 
Tanis  : see  Tunis,  Part  I.  [Translators  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


299 


One  perfume  box  is  a fish,  another  is  a bird,  another  is 
a grotesque  deity.  The  lustration  vases,  or  situlce, 
carried  by  priests  and  priestesses  for  the  purpose  of 
sprinkling  either  the  faithful,  or  the  ground  traversed 
by  religious  processions,  merit  the  special  consideration 
of  connoisseurs.  They  are  ovoid  or  pointed  at 
the  bottom,  and  decorated  with  subjects  either 
chased  or  in  relief.  These  sometimes  represent 
deities,  each  in  a separate  frame,  and  sometimes 
scenes  of  worship.  The  work  is  generally  very 
minute. 

Bronze  came  into  use  for  statuary  purposes 
from  a very  early  period  ; but  time  unfortunately 
has  preserved  none  of  those  idols  which  peopled 
the  temples  of  the  ancient  empire.  Whatsoever 
maybe  said  to  the  contrary, we  possess  no  bronze 
statuettes  of  any  period  anterior  to  the  expulsion 
of  the  Hyksos.  Some  Theban  figures  date  quite 
certainly  from  the  Eighteenth  and  Nineteenth 
Dynasties.  The  chased  lion’s 
head  found  with  the  jewels  of 
Queen  Aahhotep,  the  Harpo- 
crates  of  Boulak  inscribed  with 
the  names  of  Karnes  and  Ahmes 
I.,  and  several  statuettes  of 
Amen,  said  to  have  been  dis- 
covered at  Medinet-Haboo  and 
Sheykh  Abd-el-Gourneh,  are  of  that  period.  Our  most 
important  bronzes  belong,  however,  to  the  Twenty- 
second  Dynasty,  or,  later  still,  to  the  time  of  the 
Sa'ite  Pharaohs.  Many  are  not  older  than  the  first 
Ptolemies.  A fragment  found  in  the  ruins  of  Tanis, 


Fig.  269. 


300 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


and  now  in  the  possession  of  Count  Stroganoff,  formed 
part  of  a votive  statue  dedicated  by  King  Pisebkhanu. 
It  was  originally  two-thirds  the  size  of  life,  and  is 

the  largest  specimen 
known.  A portrait 
statuette  of  the  Lady 
Takoushet,  given  to 
the  Museum  of  Athens 
by  M.  Demetrio,  the 
four  statuettes  from 
the  Posno  collection 
now  at  the  Louvre,  and 
the  kneeling  genius 
of  Boulak,  are  all  from 
the  site  of  Bubastis, 
and  date  probably 
from  the  years  which 
immediately  preceded 
the  accession  of  Psam- 
metichus  I.  The  Lady 
Takoushet  is  stand- 
ing, the  left  foot  ad- 
vanced, the  right  arm 
hanging  dowrn,  the 
left  raised  and  brought 
close  to  the  body 
(fig.  270).  She  wears 
a short  robe  embroi- 
dered with  religious 
subjects,  and  has  bracelets  on  her  arms  and  wrists. 
Upon  her  head  she  has  a wig  with  flat  curls,  row 
above  row.  The  details  both  of  her  robe  and  jewels 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


301 


are  engraved  in  incised  lines  upon  the  surface  of  the 
bronze,  and  inlaid  with  silver  threads.  The  face  is 
evidently  a portrait,  and  represents  a woman  of  mature 
age.  The  form,  according  to  the  traditions  of  Egyptian 
art,  is  that  of  a 
younger  woman, 
slender,  firm,  and 
supple.  The  copper 
in  this  bronze  is 
largely  intermixed 
with  gold,  thus  pro- 
ducing a chastened 
lustre  which  is  ad- 
mirably suited  to  the 
richness  of  the  em- 
broidered garment. 

The  kneeling  genius 
of  Boulak  is  as  rude 
and  repellent  as  the 
Lady  Takoushet  is 
delicate  and  harmo- 
nious. He  has  a 
hawk’s  head,  and  he 
worships  the  sun, 
as  is  the  duty  of 
the  Heliopolitan  genii. 

His  right  arm  is  up-  Flg'  27.1-  • . 

lifted,  his  left  is  pressed  to  his  breast.  The  style  of 
the  whole  is  dry,  and  the  granulated  surface  of  the 
skin  adds  to  the  hard  effect  of  the  figure.  The  action, 
however,  is  energetic  and  correct,  and  the  bird’s  head 
is  adjusted  with  surprising  skill  to  the  man’s  neck 


302 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


and  shoulders.  The  same  qualities  and  the  same 
faults  distinguish  the  Horus  of  the  Posno  collection 
(fig.  271).  Standing,  he  uplifts  a libation  vase,  now 
lost,  and  pours  the  contents  upon  a king  who  once 
stood  face  to  face  with  him.  This  roughness  of  treat- 
ment is  less  apparent  in  the  other  three  Posno  figures; 

above  all  in  that  which  bears  the 
name  of  Mosou  engraved  over  the 
place  of  the  heart  (fig.  272). 
Like  the  Horus,  this  Mosou 
stands  upright,  his  left  foot  ad- 
vanced, and  his  left  arm  pendent. 
His  right  hand  is  raised,  as 
grasping  the  wand  of  office.  The 
trunk  is  naked,  and  round  his 
loins  he  wears  a striped  cloth 
with  a squared  end  falling  in  front. 
His  head  is  clad  in  a short  wig 
covered  with  short  curls  piled  one 
above  the  other.  The  ear  is 
round  and  large.  The  eyes  are 
well  opened,  and  were  originally 
of  silver  ; but  have  been  stolen  by 
some  Arab.  The  features  have  a 
remarkable  expression  of  pride 
Fig-  272.  and  dignity.  After  these,  what 

can  be  said  for  the  thousands  of  statuettes  of  Osiris, 
of  Isis,  of  Nephthys,  of  Horus,  of  Nefer-Tum,  which 
have  been  found  in  the  sands  and  ruins  of  Sakkarah, 
Bubastis,  and  other  cities  of  the  Delta?  Many  are, 
without  doubt,  charming  objects  for  glass-cases,  and 
are  to  be  admired  for  perfection  of  casting  and  deli- 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


303 


cacy  of  execution  ; but  the  greater  number  are  mere 
articles  of  commerce,  made  upon  the  same  pattern, 
and  perhaps  in  the  self-same  moulds,  century  after 
century,  for  the  delight  of  devotees  and  pilgrims. 
They  are  rounded,  vulgar,  destitute  of  originality,  and 
have  no  more  distinction  than  the  thousands  of  coloured 
statuettes  of  saints  and  Virgins  which  stock  the  shelves 
of  our  modern  dealers  in  pious  wares.  An  exception 
must,  however,  be  made  in  favour  of  the  images  of 
animals,  such  as  rams,  sphinxes,  and  lions,  which  to 
the  last  retained  a more  pronounced  stamp  of  individu- 
al^. The  Egyptians  had  a special  predilection  for  the 
feline  race.  They  have  represented  the  lion  in  every 
attitude — giving  chase  to  the  antelope  ; springing  upon 
the  hunter ; wounded,  and  turning  to  bite  his  wound  ; 
couchant,  and  disdainfully  calm — and  no  people  have 
depicted  him  with  a more  thorough  knowledge  of 
his  habits,  or  with  so  intense  a vitality.  Several  gods 
and  goddesses,  as  Shu,  Anhur,  Bast,  Sekhet,  Tefnut, 
have  the  form  of  the  lion  or  of  the  cat ; and  inasmuch 
as  the  worship  of  these  deities  was  more  popular  in 
the  Delta  than  elsewhere,  so  there  never  passes  a year 
when  from  amid  the  ruins  of  Bubastis,  Tanis,  Mendes,  or 
some  less  famous  city,  there  is  not  dug  up  a store  of 
little  figures  of  lions  and  lionesses,  or  of  men  and 
women  with  lions’  heads,  or  cats’  heads.  The  cats  of 
Bubastis  and  the  lions  of  Tell-es-Seba  crowd  our 
museums.  The  lions  of  Horbeyt  may  be  reckoned 
among  the  chejs-d'  ceuvre  of  Egyptian  statuar}'. 
Upon  one  of  the  largest  among  them  is  inscribed  the 
name  of  Apries  (fig.  273)  ; but  if  even  this  evidence 
were  lacking,  the  style  of  the  piece  would  compel  us  to 


304 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


attribute  it  to  the  Sa'ite  period.  It  formed  part  of  the 
ornamentation  of  a temple,  or  naos,  door ; and  the 
other  side  was  either  built  into  a wall  or  imbedded 
in  a piece  of  wood.  The  lion  is  caught  in  a trap,  or, 
perhaps,  lying  down  in  an  oblong  cage,  with  only  his 
head  and  fore  feet  outside.  The  lines  of  the  body  are 
simple  and  full  of  power  ; the  expression  of  the  face 
is  calm  and  strong.  In  breadth  and  majesty  he  almost 
equals  the  fine  limestone  lions  of  Amenhotep  III. 

The  idea  of  inlaying  gold  and  other  precious  metals 


Fig-  273. 


upon  the  surface  of  bronze,  stone,  or  wood  was 
already  ancient  in  Egypt  in  the  time  of  Cheops.  The 
gold  is  often  amalgamated  with  pure  silver.  When 
amalgamated  to  the  extent  of  20  per  cent,  it  changes 
its  name,  and  is  called  electrum  ( asimu ).  This  electrum 
is  of  a fine  light-yellow  colour.  It  pales  as  the  pro- 
portion of  silver  becomes  larger,  and  at  60  per  cent, 
it  is  nearly  white.  The  silver  came  chiefly  from  Asia, 
in  rings,  sheets,  and  bricks  of  standard  weight.  The 
gold  and  electrum  came  partly  from  Syria  in  bricks 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


305 


and  rings  ; and  partly  from  the  Soudan  in  nuggets  and 
gold-dust.  The  processes  of  refining  and  alloying  are 
figured  on  certain  monuments  of  the  early  dynasties. 
In  a bas-relief  at  Sakkarah,  we  see  the  weighed  gold 
entrusted  to  the  craftsman  for  working  ; in  another 
example  (at  Beni-Hassan)  the  washing  and  melting 
down  of  the  ore  is  represented  ; and  again  at  Thebes, 
the  goldsmith  is  depicted  seated  in  front  of  his  crucible, 
holding  the  blow-pipe  to  his  lips  with  the  left  hand,  and 
grasping  his  pincers  with  the  right,  thus  fanning  the 
flame,  and  at  the  same  time  making  ready  to  seize  the 
ingot  (fig.  274).  The  Egyptians  struck  neither  coins 
nor  medals.  With  these  excep- 
tions, they  made  the  same  use 
of  the  precious  metals  as  we  do 
ourselves.  We  gild  the  crosses 
and  cupolas  of  our  churches ; they 
covered  the  doors  of  their 
temples,  the  lower  part  of  their 
wall-surfaces,  certain  bas-reliefs,  pyramidions  of 

obelisks,  and  even  whole  obelisks,  with  plates  of  gold. 
The  obelisks  of  Queen  Hatshepsu  at  Karnak  were 
coated  with  electrum.  “ They  were  visible  from  both 
banks  of  the  Nile,  and  when  the  sun  rose  between  them 
as  he  came  up  from  the  heavenly  horizon,  they  flooded 
the  two  Egypts  with  their  dazzling  rays.”*  These 
plates  of  metal  were  forged  with  hammer  and  anvil. 
For  smaller  objects,  they  made  use  of  little  pellets 
beaten  flat  between  two  pieces  of  parchment.  In  the 


* From  the  inscription  upon  the  obelisk  of  Hatshepsu  which  is  still 
erect  at  Karnak.  Fora  translation  in  full  see  Records  of  the  Past , vol. 
xii.,  p.  131,  ct  seqq.  [Translator’s  note.] 


20 


306  EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 

Museum  of  the  Louvre  we  have  a gilder’s  book,  and 
the  gold-leaf  which  it  contains  is  as  thin  as  the  gold- 
leaf  used  by  the  German  goldsmiths  of  the  past  century. 
Gold  was  applied  to  bronze  surfaces  by  means  of  an 
ammoniacal  solvent.  If  the  object  to  be  gilt  were  a 
wooden  statuette,  the  workman  began  by  sticking  a 
piece  of  fine  linen  all  over  the  surface,  or  by  covering  it 
with  a very  thin  coat  of  plaster  ; upon  this  he  laid  his 
gold  or  silver  leaf.  It  was  thus  that  wooden  statuettes 
of  Thoth,  Horus,  and  Nefer-Tum  were  gilded,  from 
the  time  of  Cheops.  The  Temple  of  Isis,  the  “ Lady 
of  the  Pyramid,”  contained  a dozen  such  images ; and 
this  temple  was  not  one  of  the  largest  in  the  Memphite 
necropolis.  There  would  seem  to  have  been  hundreds 
of  gilded  statues  in  the  Theban  temples,  at  all  events 
in  the  time  of  the  victorious  dynasties  of  the  new 
empire  ; and  as  regards  wealth,  the  Ptolemaic  sanc- 
tuaries were  in  no  wise  inferior  to  those  of  the  Theban 
period. 

Bronze  and  gilded  wood  were  not  always  good 
enough  for  the  gods  of  Egypt.  They  exacted  pure 
gold,  and  their  worshippers  gave  them  as  much  of  it  as 
possible.  Entire  statues  of  the  precious  metals  were 
dedicated  by  the  kings  of  the  ancient  and  middle 
empires ; and  the  Pharaohs  of  the  Eighteenth  and 
Nineteenth  Dynasties,  who  drew  at  will  upon  the 
treasures  of  Asia,  transcended  all  that  had  been  done 
by  their  predecessors.  Even  in  times  of  decadence,  the 
feudal  lords  kept  up  the  traditions  of  the  past,  and,  like 
Prince  Mentu-em-hat,  replaced  the  images  of  gold  and 
silver  which  had  been  carried  off  from  Karnak  by  the 
generals  of  Sardanapalus  at  the  time  of  the  Assyrian 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


307 


invasions.  The  quantity  of  metal  thus  consecrated  to 
the  service  of  the  gods  must  have  been  considerable. 
If  many  figures  were  less  than  an  inch  in  height, 
many  others  measured  three  cubits,  or  more.  Some 
were  of  gold,  some  of  silver  ; others  were  part  gold 
and  part  silver.  There  were  even  some  which  com- 
bined gold  with  sculptured  ivory,  ebony,  and  precious 
stones,  thus  closely  resembling  the  chryselephantine 
statues  of  the  Greeks.  Aided  by  the  bas-relief  subjects 
of  Karnak,  Medinet-Haboo,  and  Denderah,  as  well  as 
by  the  statues  in  wood  and  limestone  which  have  come 
down  to  our  day,  we  can  tell  exactly  what  they  were 
like.  However  the  material  might  vary,  the  style  was 
always  the  same.  Nothing  is  more  perishable  than 
works  of  this  description.  They  are  foredoomed  to 
destruction  by  the  mere  value  of  the  materials  in  which 
they  are  made.  What  civil  war  and  foreign  invasion 
had  spared,  and  what  had  chanced  to  escape  the  rapacity 
of  Roman  princes  and  governors,  fell  a prey  to  Christian 
iconoclasm.  A few  tiny  statuettes  buried  as  amulets 
upon  the  bodies  of  mummies,  a few  domestic  divinities 
buried  in  the  ruins  of  private  houses,  a few  ex-votos 
forgotten,  perchance,  in  some  dark  corner  of  a fallen 
sanctuary,  have  escaped  till  the  present  day.  The 
Ptah  and  Amen  of  Queen  Aah-hotep,  another  golden 
Amen  also  at  Boulak,  and  the  silver  vulture  found  in 
1885  at  Medinet-Haboo,  are  the  only  pieces  of  this  kind 
which  can  be  attributed  with  certainty  to  the  great 
period  of  Egyptian  art.  The  remainder  are  of  Sa'ite  or 
Ptolemaic  work,  and  are  remarkable  only  for  the  per- 
fection with  which  they  are  wrought.  The  gold  and 
silver  vessels  used  in  the  service  of  the  temples,  and  in 


308 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH.KOLOGY. 


the  houses  of  private  persons,  shared  the  fate  of  the 
statues.  At  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  the 
Louvre  acquired  some  flat-bottomed  cups  which  Thoth- 

nres  III.  presented 
as  the  reward  of 
valour  to  one  of 
his  generals  named 
Tahuti.  The  silver 
cup  is  much  muti- 
lated, but  the 
golden  cup  is  in- 
tact and  elegantly 
designed  (fig.  275). 
The  upright  sides 
Fi&-  275-  are  adorned  with 

a hieroglyphic  legend.  A central  rosette  is  engraved 
at  the  bottom.  Six  fish  are  represented  in  the  act  of 
swimming  round  the  rosette , and  these  again  are 
surrounded  by  a border  of  lotus-bells  united  by  a 
curved  line.  The  five  silver 
vases  of  Thmuis,  in  the  Boulak 
Museum,  are  of  silver.  They 
formed  part  of  the  treasure  of 
the  temple,  and  had  been  buried 
in  a hiding-place,  where  they 
remained  till  our  own  day.  We 
have  no  indication  of  their  pro- 
bable age  ; but  whether  they 
belong  to  the  Greek  or  the  Theban  period,  the  work- 
manship is  purely  Egyptian.  Of  one  vessel,  only  the 
cover  is  left,  the  handle  being  formed  of  two  flowers 
upon  one  stem.  The  others  are  perfect,  and  are 


Fig.  276. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


309 


decorated  in  repousse  work  with  lotus-lilies  in  bud  and 
blossom  (fig.  276).  The  form  is  simple  and  elegant  ; 
the  ornamentation  sober  and  delicate  ; the  relief  low. 
One  is,  however,  surrounded  by  a row  of  ovoid  bosses 
(fig.  277),  which  project  in  high  relief,  and  somewhat 
alter  the  shape  of  the  body  of 
the  vase.  These  are  interesting 
specimens  ; but  they  are  so  few 
in  number  that,  were  it  not  for 
the  wall-paintings,  we  should 
have  but  a very  imperfect  idea 
of  the  skill  of  the  Egyptian 
goldsmiths. 

The  Pharaohs  had  not  our 
commercial  resources,  and  could  not  circulate  the  gold 
and  silver  tribute-offerings  of  conquered  nations  in  the 
form  of  coin.  When  the  gods  had  received  their  share 
of  the  booty,  there  was  no  alternative  but  to  melt  the 
rest  down  into  ingots,  fashion  it  into  personal  orna- 
ments, or  convert  it  into 
gold  and  silver  plate.  What 
was  true  of  the  kings  held 
good  also  for  their  subjects. 
For  the  space  of  at  least  six 
or  eight  centuries,  dating 
...  „ from  the  time  of  Ahmes  I., 

the  taste  for  plate  was  carried 
to  excess.  Every  good  house  was  not  only  stocked  with 
all  that  was  needful  for  the  service  of  the  table,  such  as 
cups,  goblets,  plates,  ewers,  and  ornamental  baskets 
chased  with  figures  of  fantastic  animals  (fig.  278)  ; but 
also  with  large  ornamental  vases  which  were  dressed  with 


3io 


EGYPTIAN  ARCH/E0L0GY. 


flowers,  and  displayed  to  visitors  on  gala  days.  Some 
of  these  vases  were  of  extra- 
ordinary richness.  Here,  for 
instance,  is  a crater,  the  handles 
modelled  as  two  papyrus  buds, 
and  the  foot  as  a full-blown 
papyrus.  Two  Asiatic  slaves 
in  sumptuous  garments  are  re- 
presented in  the  act  of  upheav- 
ing it  with  all  their  strength. 
fr'S-  279-  Here,  again,  is  a kind  of  hydria, 

with  a lid  in  the  form  of  an 
inverted  lotus  flanked  by  the 
heads  of  two  gazelles  (fig.  280). 

The  heads  and  necks  of  two 
horses,  bridled  and  fully 
caparisoned,  stand  back  to 
back  on  either  side  of  the  foot 
of  the  vase.  The  body  is 
divided  into  a series  of  hori- 
zontal zones,  the  middle  zone 

being  in  the  likeness  of  a marshland,  with  an 
antelope  coursing  at  full  speed  among  the 
reeds.  Two  enamelled  cruets  have  elabor- 
ately wrought  lids,  one  fashioned  as  the  head 
of  a plumed  eagle,  and  the  other  as  the  head 
of  the  gcd  Bes  flanked  by  two  vipers.  But 
foremost  among  them  all  is  a golden  centre- 
piece offered  by  a viceroy  of  Ethiopia  to 
Amenhotep  III.  The  design  reproduces  one 
of  the  most  popular  subjects  connected  with 
the  foreign  conquests  of  Eg}rpt  (fig.  283).  Men  and 


Fig.  2S1. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


I I 


apes  are  seen  gathering  fruits  in  a forest  of  Dom 
palms.  Two  natives,  each  with  a single  feather  on  his 
head  and  a striped  kilt  about  his  loins,  lead  tame  giraffes 
with  halters.  Others,  apparently  of  the  same  nation- 
ality, kneel  with  upraised  hands,  as  if 
begging  for  quarter.  Two  negro  prisoners 
lying  face  downwards  upon  the  ground, 
lift  their  heads  with  difficulty.  A large 
vase  with  a short  foot  and  a lofty  cone- 
shaped  cover  stands  amid  the  trees.  The 
craftsmen  who  made  this  vase  evidently 
valued  elegance  and  beauty  less  than  rich- 
ness. They  cared  little  for  the  heavy 
effect  and  bad  taste  of  the  whole,  provided 
only  that  they  were  praised  for  their  skill, 
and  for  the  quantity  of  metal  which  they  had  succeeded 
in  using.  Other  vases  of  the  same  type,  pictured  in 
a scene  of  presentations  to  Rameses  II.  in  the  great 
temple  of  Aboo  Simbel,  vary  the  subject  by  showing 

buffaloes  running 
in  and  out  among 
the  trees,  in  place 
of  led  giraffes. 
These  were  costly 
playthings  wrought 
in  gold,  such  as  the 
Byzantine  emperors 
of  the  ninth  century  accumulated  in  their  palace  of 
Magnaura,  and  which  they  exhibited  on  state  occasions 
in  order  to  impress  foreigners  with  a profound’  sense  of 
their  riches  and  power.  When  a victorious  Pharaoh  re- 
turned from  a distant  campaign,  the  vessels  of  gold  and 


Fig.  282. 


312 


EGYPTIAN  ARCII/EOI.OGY. 


£) 

YSvT 


silver  which  formed  part  of  his  booty  figured  in  the 
triumphal  procession,  together  with  his  train  of  foreign 
captives.  Vases  in  daily  use  were  of 
slighter  make  and  less  encumbered  with 
inconvenient  ornaments.  The  two- 
leopards  which  serve  as  handles  to  a 
crater  of  the  time  of  Thothmes  III. 
(fig.  284)  are  not  well  proportioned, 
neither  do  they  combine  agreeably 
with  the  curves  of  the  vase  ; but  the 
accompanying  cup  (fig.  285),  and  a cruet  belonging  to 
the  same  service  (fig.  286),  are  very  happily  conceived, 
and  have  much  purity  of  form.  These  vessels  of 
engraved  and  repousse  gold  and 
silver,  some  representing  hunting 
scenes  and  incidents  of  battle, 
were  imitated  by  Phoenician 
craftsmen,  and,  being  exported  to 
Asia  Minor,  Greece,  and  Italy,  Fig-  285. 

carried  Eg)-ptian  patterns  and  subjects  into  distant 
lands.  The  passion  for  precious  metals  was  pushed  to 
such  extremes  under  the  reigns  of  the  Ramessides  that 
it  was  no  longer  enough  to  use 
them  only  at  table.  Rameses  II. 
and  Rameses  III.  had  thrones  of 
gold — not  mereR  of  wood  plated 
with  gold,  but  made  of  the  solid 
Fig.  286.  metal  and  set  with  precious  stones. 

These  things  were  too  valuable  to  escape  destruction, 
and  were  the  first  to  disappear.  Their  artistic  value, 
however,  by  no  means  equalled  their  intrinsic  value,  and 
the  loss  is  not  one  for  which  we  need  be  inconsolable. 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


313 


Orientals,  men  and  women  alike,  are  great  lovers  of 
jewellery.  The  Egyptians  were  no  exception  to  this 
rule.  Not  satisfied  to  adorn  themselves  when  living 
with  a profusion  of  trinkets,  they  loaded  the  arms, 
the  fingers,  the  neck,  the  ears,  the  brow,  and  the  ankles 
of  their  dead  with  more  or  less  costly  ornaments.  The 
quantity  thus  buried  in  tombs  was  so  considerable  that 
even  now,  after  thirty  centuries  of  active  search,  we  find 
from  time  to  time  mummies  which  are,  so  to  say, 
cuirassed  in  gold.  Much  of  this  funerary  jewellery  was 
made  merely  for  show  on  the  day  of  the  funeral,  and 
betrays  its  purpose  by  the  slightness  of  the  workman- 
ship. The  favourite  jewels  of  the  deceased  person 
were,  nevertheless,  frequently  buried  with 
him,  and  the  style  and  finish  of  these  leave 
nothing  to  be  desired.  Chains  and  rings 
have  come  down  to  us  in  large  numbers,  as 
indeed  might  be  expected.  The  ring,  in  Fig.  287. 
fact,  was  not  a simple  ornament,  but  an  actual  neces- 
sary. Official  documents  were  not  signed,  but  sealed ; 
and  the  seal  was  good  in  law.  Every  Egyptian, 
therefore,  had  his  seal,  which  he  kept  about  his 
person,  ready  for  use  if  required.  The  poor  man’s  seal 
was  a simple  copper  or  silver  ring  ; the  ring  of  the  rich 
man  was  a more  or  less  elaborate  jewel  covered  with 
chasing  and  relief  work.  The  bezel  was  movable,  and 
turned  upon  a pivot.  It  was  frequently  set  with  some 
kind  of  stone  engraved  with  the  owner’s  emblem  or 
device;  as,  for  example,  a scorpion  (fig.  287),  a lion,  a 
hawk,  or  a cynocephalus  ape.  As  in  the  eyes  of  her 
husband  his  ring  was  the  one  essential  ornament,  so 
was  her  chain  in  the  estimation  of  the  Egyptian  lady. 


314 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


I have  seen  a specimen  in  silver  which  measured  sixty- 
three  inches  in  length.  Others,  on  the  contrary,  do  not 
exceed  two,  or  two  and  a half  inches.  They  are  of  all 
sizes  and  patterns,  some  consisting  of  two  or  three 
twists,  some  of  large  links,  some  of  small  links,  some 
massive  and  heavy,  others  as  light  and  flexible  as  the 
finest  Venetian  filigree.  The  humblest  peasant  girl, 
as  well  as  the  lady  of  highest  rank,  might  have  her  neck- 
let ; and  the  woman  must  be  poor  indeed  whose  little 
store  comprised  no  other  ornament.  No  mere  catalogue 
of  bracelets,  diadems,  collarettes,  or  insignia  of  nobility 
could  give  an  idea  of  the  number  and  variety  of  jewels 
known  to  us  by  pictured  representations  or  existing 
specimens.  At  Berlin  may  be  seen  the  parurc  of  an 
Ethiopian  Candace  ; at  the  Louvre  we  have  the  jewels 
of  Prince  Psar ; at  Boulak  are  preserved  the  orna- 
ments of  Queen  Aah-hotep,  the  most  complete  of  all. 
Aah-hotep  was  the  wife  of  Karnes,  a king  of  the 
Seventeenth  Dynasty,  and  she  was  probably  the 
mother  of  Ahmes  I.*  Her  mummy  had  been  stolen 
by  one  of  the  robber  bands  which  infested  the  Theban 
necropolis  towards  the  close  of  the  Twentieth  Dynasty. 
They  buried  the  royal  corpse  till  such  time  as  they 
might  have  leisure  to  despoil  it  in  safety  ; and  they  were 
most  likely  seized  and  executed  before  they  could  carry 
that  pretty  little  project  into  effect.  The  secret  of  their 
hiding-place  perished  with  them,  till  discovered  in  i860 
by  some  Arab  diggers.  Most  of  the  objects  which  this 
queen  took  with  her  into  the  next  world  were  exclusively 
woman’s  gear ; as  a fan-handle  plated  with  gold,  a 
bronze-gilt  mirror  mounted  upon  an  ebony  handle  en- 
* First  king  of  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty.  [Translator's  note.] 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS.  3 I 5 

riched  with  a lotus  in  chased  gold  (fig.  288).  Her 
bracelets  are  of  various  types.  Some  are  anklets  and 
armlets,  and  consist  merely  of  plain  gold  rings,  both 
solid  and  hollow,  bordered  with  plaited 
chainwork  in  imitation  of  filigree. 

Others  are  for  wearing  on  the  wrist, 
like  the  bracelets  of  modern  ladies, 
and  are  made  of  small  beads  in  gold, 
lapis  lazuli,  carnelian,  and  green  felds- 
path.  These  are  strung  on  gold  wire 
in  a chequer  pattern,  each  square 
divided  diagonally  in  halves  of  differ- 
ent colours.  Two  gold  plates,  very 
lightly  engraved  with  the  cartouches 
of  Ahmes  I.,  are  connected  by  means 
of  a gold  pin,  and  form  the  fastening.  Fig.  288. 

A fine  bracelet  in  the  form  of  two  semicircles  joined  by 
a hinge  (fig.  289),  also  bears  the  name  of  Ahmes  I. 


Fig.  2S9. 


The  make  of  this  jewel  reminds  us  of  cloisonne  enamels. 
Ahmes  kneels  in  the  presence  of  the  god  Seb  and  his 
acolytes,  the  genii  of  Sop  and  Khonu.  The  figures  and 


3 1 6 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


hieroglyphs  are  cut  out  in  solid  gold,  delicately  engraved 
with  the  burin,  and  stand  in  relief  upon  a ground- 
surface  filled  in  with  pieces  of  blue  paste  and  lapis  lazuli 
artistically  cut.  A bracelet  of  more  complicated  work- 
manship, though  of  in- 
ferior execution,  was  found 
on  the  wrist  of  the  queen 
(fig.  290).  It  is  of  massive 
gold,  and  consists  of  three 
parallel  bands  set  with 
turquoises.  On  the  front 
a vulture  is  represented 
with  outspread  wings,  the 
feathers  composed  of  green 
enamel,  lapis  lazuli,  and 
carnelian,  set  in  “ cloisons  ” of  gold.  The  hair  of  the 
mummy  was  drawn  through  a massive  gold  diadem, 
scarcely  as  large  as  a bracelet.  The  name  of  Ahmes 
is  incrusted  in  blue  paste  upon  an  oblong  plaque  in  the 
centre,  flanked  at  each  side 
by  two  little  sphinxes 
which  seem  as  if  in  the  act 
of  keeping  watch  over  the 
inscription  (fig.  291). 

Round  her  neck  was  a 
large  flexible  gold  chain, 
finished  at  each  end  by  a 
goose’s  head  reversed. 

These  heads  could  be  linked  one  in  the  other, 
when  the  chain  needed  to  be  fastened.  The  scara- 
baeus  pendant  to  this  chain  is  incrusted  upon  the 
shoulder  and  wing-sheaths  with  blue  glass  paste  rayed 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


317 


with  gold,  the  legs  and  body  being  in  massive  gold. 
The  royal  parure  was  completed  by  a large  collar  of 
the  kind  known  as  “ Usekh”  (fig.  292).  It  is  finished 


at  each  end  with  a golden  hawk’s  head  inlaid  with  blue 
enamel,  and  consists  of  rows  of  scrolls,  four-petalled 
fleurettes,  hawks,  vultures,  winged  uraei,  crouching 
jackals,  and  figures 
of  antelopes  pur- 
sued by  tigers.  The 
whole  of  these 
ornaments  are  of 
gold  repousse  work, 
and  they  were  sewn 
upon  the  royal 
winding  sheet  by 
means  of  a small 
ring  soldered  to 
the  back  of  each. 

Upon  the  breast,  below  this  collar,  hung  a square 
jewel  of  the  kind  known  as  " pectoral  ornaments  ” 
(fig.  293).  The  general  form  is  that  of  a naos,  or 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHEOLOGY. 


318 


shrine.  Ahmes  stands  upright  in  a papyrus-bark, 
between  Amen  and  Ra,  who  pour  the  water  of  purifica- 
tion upon  his  head  and  body.  Two  hawks 
hover  to  right  and  left  of  the  king,  above 


the  heads  of  the  gods. 


The  figures  are  out- 


lined in  cloisons  of  gold,  and  these  were 
filled  in  with  little  plaques  of  precious  stones 
and  enamel,  many  of  which  have  fallen  out. 
The  effect  of  this  piece  is  somewhat  heavy, 
and  if  considered  apart  from  the  rest  of  the 
parure,  its  purpose  might  seem  somewhat 
obscure.  In  order  to  form  a correct  judg- 
ment, we  have,  however,  to  remember  in 
what  fashion  the  women  of  ancient  Egypt 
were  clad.  They  wore  a kind  of  smock  of 
semi-transparent  material,  which  came  very 
little  higher  than  the  waist.  The  chest  and 
bosom,  neck  and  shoulders,  were  bare ; and 
the  one  garment  was  kept  in  place  by  only 
a slender  pair  of  braces.  The  rich  clothed 
these  uncovered  parts  with  jewellery.  The 
Usekh  collar  half  hid  the  shoulders  and 
chest.  The  pectoral  masked  the  hollow 
between  the  breasts.  Sometimes  even  the 
breasts  were  covered  with  two  golden  cups, 
either  painted  or  enamelled.  Besides  the 
jewels  found  upon  the  mummy  of  Queen 
Aah-hotep,  a number  of  arms  and  amulets 
were  heaped  inside  her  coffin  ; namely,  three 
294.  massive  or0]fi  files  hanging  from  a slender 
chain  ; nine  small  hatchets,  three  of  gold  and  six  of 
silver  ; a golden  lion’s  head  of  very  minute  workman- 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


31 9 


ship ; a wooden  sceptre  set  in  gold  spirals ; two 
anklets;  and  two  poignards.  One  of  these  poignards 
(fig.  294)  has  a golden  sheath  and  a wooden  hilt 
inlaid  with  triangular  mosaics  of  carnelian,  lapis 
lazuli,  feldspath,  and  gold.  Four  female  heads  in 
gold  repousse  form  the  pommel  ; and  a bull’s  head 
reversed  covers  the  junction  of  blade 
and  hilt.  The  edges  of  the  blade  are  of 
massive  gold ; the  centre  of  black  bronze 
damascened  with  gold.  On  one  side  is 
the  solar  cartouche  of  Ahmes,  below 
which  a lion  pursues  a bull,  the  remain- 
ing space  being  filled  in  with  four 
grasshoppers  in  a row.  On  the  other 
side  we  have  the  family  name  of  Ahmes 
and  a series  of  full-blown  flowers  issuing 
one  from  another  and  diminishing 
towards  the  point.  A poignard  found 
at  Mycenae  by  Dr.  Schliemann  is 
similarly  decorated.  The  Phoenicians, 
who  were  industrious  copyists  of  Egyp- 
tian models,  probably  introduced  this 
pattern  into  Greece.  The  queen’s  second 
poignard  is  of  a make  not  uncommon 
to  this  day  in  Persia  and  India.  The 
blade  is  of  yellowish  bronze  fixed  into  a 
disk-shaped  hilt  of  silver.  When  wielded,  this  lenticular* 
disk  fits  to  the  hollow  of  the  hand,  the  blade  coming  be- 
tween the  first  and  second  fingers.  Of  what  use,  it  may 
be  asked,  were  all  these  weapons  to  a woman — and 
a dead  woman  ? To  this  we  may  reply  that  the 

* That  is,  lentil-shaped,  or  a double  convex.  [Translator’s  note.] 


Fig.  295. 


320 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


other  world  was  peopled  with  foes — Typhonian  genii, 
serpents,  gigantic  scorpions,  tortoises,  monsters  of 

every  description — 

against  which  it  was 
incessantly  needful  to 
do  battle.  The  poig- 
nards  placed  inside  the 
coffin  for  the  self- 
defence  of  the  soul  were  useful  only  for 
fighting  at  close  quarters  ; certain  weapons 
of  a projectile  kind  were  therefore  added, 
such  as  bows  and  arrows,  boomerangs 
made  in  hard  wood,  and  a war-hatchet. 
The  handle  of  this  hatchet  is  fashioned 
of  cedar-wood  covered  with  sheet  gold 
(fig.  296).  The  legend  of  Ahmes  is  inlaid 
thereon  in  characters  of  lapis  lazuli, 
carnelian,  turquoise,  and  green  feldspath. 
The  blade  is  fixed  in  a cleft  of  the  wood, 
and  held  in  place  by  a plait-work  of  gold 
wire.  It  is  of  black  bronze,  formerly  gilt. 
On  one  side,  it  is  ornamented  with  lotus 
flowers  upon  a gold  ground  ; on  the  other, 
Ahmes  is  represented  in  the  act  of  slaying 
a barbarian,  whom  he  grasps  by  the  hair 
of  the  head.  Beneath  this  group,  Menthu, 
the  Egyptian  war-god,  is  symbolised  by  a 
griffin  with  the  head  of  an  eagle.  In  ad- 
Fig.  296.  dition  to  all  these  objects,  there  were  two 
small  boats,  one  in  gold  and  one  in  silver,  emblematic 
of  the  bark  in  which  the  mummy  must  cross  the 
river  to  her  last  home,  and  of  that  other  bark  in  which 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


321 


she  would  ultimately  navigate  the  waters  of  the 
West,  in  company  with  the  immortal  gods.  When 
found,  the  silver  boat  rested  upon  a wooden  truck 
with  four  bronze  wheels ; but  as  it  was  in  a very 
dilapidated  state,  it  has  been  dismounted  and  replaced 
by  the  golden  boat.  The  hull  is  long  and  slight,  the 
prow  and  stem  are  elevated,  and  terminate  in  gracefully- 
curved  papyrus  blossoms.  Two  little  platforms  sur- 
rounded by  balustrades  on  a panelled  ground,  stand  at 
the  prow  and  on  the  poop,  like  quarter-decks.  The 
pilot  stands  upon  the  one,  and  the  steersman  behind 


the  other,  with  a large  oar  in  his  hand.  This  oar 
takes  the  place  of  the  modern  helm.  Twelve  boatmen 
in  solid  silver  are  rowing  under  the  orders  of  these  two 
officers  ; Karnes  himself  being  seated  in  the  centre, 
hatchet  and  sceptre  in  hand.  Such  were  some  of  the 
objects  buried  with  one  single  mummy ; and  I have 
even  now  enumerated  only  the  most  remarkable  among 
them.  The  technical  processes  throughout  are  irre- 
proachable, and  the  correct  taste  of  the  craftsman  is  in 
no  wise  inferior  to  his  dexterity  of  hand.  Having 
arrived  at  the  perfection  displayed  in  the  parure  of 
Aah-hotep,  the  goldsmith's  art  did  not  long  maintain 


21 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


so  high  a level.  The  fashions  changed,  and  jewellery 
became  heavier  in  design.  The  ring  of  Rameses  II., 
with  his  horses  standing  upon  the  bezel  (fig.  298),  and 
the  bracelet  of  Prince  Psar,  with  his  griffins  and  lotus 
flowers  in  cloisonne  enamel  (fig.  299),  both  in  the 
Louvre,  are  less  happily  conceived  than 
the  bracelets  of  Ahmes.  The  craftsmen 
who  made  these  ornaments  were  doubtless 
as  skilful  as  the  craftsmen  of  the  time  of 
Queen  Aah-hotep,  but  they  had  less  taste 
and  less  invention.  Rameses  II.  was  con- 
demned either  to  forego  the  pleasure  of 
wearing  his  ring,  or  to  see  his  little  horses  damaged 
and  broken  off  by  the  least  accident.  Already  notice- 
able in  the  time  of  the  Nineteenth  Dynasty,  this 
decadence  becomes  more  marked  as  we  approach  the 


Fig.  298. 


Fig.  299. 


Christian  era.  The  earrings  of  Rameses  IX.  in  the 
Boulak  Museum  are  an  ungraceful  assemblage  of 
filigree  disks,  short  chains,  and  pendent  uraei,  such 
as  no  human  ear  could  have  carried  without  being 
torn,  or  pulled  out  of  shape.  They  were  attached 


THE  INDUSTRIAL  ARTS. 


323 


to  each  side  of  the  wig  upon  the  head  of  the  mummy. 
The  bracelets  of  the  High  Priest  Pinotem  III., 
found  upon  his  mummy,  are  mere  round  rings  of 
gold  incrusted  with  pieces  of  coloured  glass  and 
carnelian,  like  those  still  made  by  the  Soudanese 
blacks.  The  Greek  invasion  began  by  modifying  the 
style  of  Egyptian  gold-work,  and  ended  by  gradu- 
ally substituting  Greek  t}-pes  for  native  types. 
The  jewels  of  an  Ethiopian  queen,  purchased  from 
Ferlini  by  the  Berlin  Museum,  contained  not  only 
some  ornaments  which  might  readily  have  been 
attributed  to  Pharaonic  times,  but  others  of  a 
mixed  style  in  which  Hellenic  influences  are  distinctly 
traceable.  The  treasure  discovered  at  Zagazig  in 
1878,  at  Keneh  in  1881,  and  at  Damanhour  in  18S2, 
consisted  of  objects  having  nothing  whatever  in 
common  with  Egyptian  traditions.  They  comprise 
hairpins  supporting  statuettes  of  Venus,  zone-buckles, 
agraffes  for  fastening  the  peplum,  rings  and  bracelets 
set  with  cameos,  and  caskets  ornamented  at  the  four 
corners  with  little  Ionic  columns.  The  old  patterns, 
however,  were  still  in  request  in  remote  provincial 
places,  and  village  goldsmiths  adhered  “indifferent 
well  ” to  the  antique  traditions  of  their  craft.  Their 
city  brethren  had  meanwhile  no  skill  to  do  aught  but 
make  clumsy  copies  of  Greek  and  Roman  originals. 

In  this  rapid  sketch  of  the  industrial  arts  there  are 
many  lacunae.  When  referring  to  examples,  I have 
perforce  limited  myself  to  such  as  are  contained  in 
the  best-known  collections.  How  many  more  might 
not  be  discovered  if  one  had  leisure  to  visit  provincial 
museums,  and  trace  what  the  hazard  of  sales  may  have 


324 


EGYPTIAN  ARCHAEOLOGY. 


dispersed  through  private  collections  ! The  variety  of 
small  monuments  due  to  the  industry  of  ancient  Egypt 
is  infinite,  and  a methodical  study  of  those  monuments 
has  yet  to  be  made.  It  is  a task  which  promises 
many  surprises  to  whomsoever  shall  undertake  it. 


t 


NOTES. 


For  the  following  notes , to  which  reference  numbers  will  be  found  in  the 
text , I am  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  Mr.  IV.  M.  Flinders  Petrie, 
author  of  “The  Pyramids  and  Temples  of  Gizeh  ” (Field  & 
Tuer),  “ Tanis  ” ( Egypt  Exploration  Fund),  “ Naukratis  ” (Egypt 
Exploration  Fund),  etc.,  etc.  A.  B.  E. 

(1)  More  striking  than  these  are  the  towns  of  Tell  Atrib, 
Kom  Baglieh,  Kom  Abn  Billn,  and  Tel  Nebesheh,  the  houses  of 
which  may  be  traced  without  any  special  excavations. 

(2)  There  is  much  skill  needed  in  mixing  the  mud  and  sand 
in  such  proportions  as  to  dry  properly  ; when  rightly  adjusted 
there  is  no  cracking  in  drying,  and  the  grains  of  sand  prevent 
the  mud  from  being  washed  away  in  the  rains. 

(3)  In  the  Delta,  at  least,  the  sizes  of  bricks  from  the  Twenty- 
first  Dynasty  down  to  Arab  times  decrease  very  regularly ; 
under  the  Twenty-first  Dynasty  they  are  about  18x9x5  inches  ; 
early  in  the  Twenty-sixth,  i6Tx8^x5;  later  15x7^;  in  early 
Ptolemaic  times,  14x7;  in  Roman  times,  12x6,  in  Byzantine 
times,  10x5  ; and  Arab  bricks  are  8x4,  and  continue  so  very 
generally  to  our  times.  The  thickness  is  always  least  certain,  as 
it  depends  on  the  amount  placed  in  the  mould,  but  the  length 
and  breadth  may  in  most  cases  be  accepted  as  a very  useful 
chronological  scale. 

(4)  They  are  found  of  Ramesside  age  at  Nebesheh  and 
Defenneh ; even  there  they  are  rare,  and  these  are  the  only 
cases  I have  yet  seen  in  Egypt  earlier  than  about  the  third 
century  a.d. 

(5)  This  system  was  sometimes  used  to  raise  a fort  above 
the  plain,  as  at  Defenneh ; or  the  chambers  formed  store-rooms, 
as  at  the  fort  at  Naukratis. 


NOTES. 


326 

(6)  In  the  fine  early  work  at  Gizeh  they  sawed  the  paving 
blocks  of  basalt,  and  then  ground  only  just  the  edges  flat,  while 
all  the  inside  of  the  joint  was  picked  rough  to  hold  the  mortar. 

(7)  A usual  plan  in  early  times  was  to  dress  the  joint  faces  of 
the  block  in  the  quarry,  leaving  its  outer  face  with  a rough  excess 
of  a few  inches  ; the  excess  still  remains  on  the  granite  casing 
of  the  pyramid  of  Menkara,  and  the  result  of  dressing  it  away 
may  be  seen  in  the  corners  of  the  granite  temple  at  Gizeh. 

(8)  Otherwise  called  the  Granite  Temple  of  Gizeh,  or  Temple 
of  Khafra,  as  its  connection  with  the  Sphinx  is  much  disputed, 
while  it  is  in  direct  communication  with  the  temple  of  the 
pyramid  of  Khafra,  by  a causeway  in  line  with  the  entrance 
passage. 

(9 ) The  casing  of  the  open  air  court  on  the  top  of  it  was  of 
fine  limestone  ; only  a few  blocks  of  this  remain.  For  full  plan 
and  measurements  see  Pyramids  and  Temples  of  Gizeh. 

(10)  One  of  the  air  slits,  or  ventilators,  remains  complete, 
opening  to  the  upper  court,  from  the  top  of  the  niche  chamber. 

(ri)  Below  these  lines,  there  is  often  a scene  of  offering  at 
the  bottom  of  the  Obelisk. 

(12)  Mastaba  is  the  Arabic  name  for  a bench  or  platform, 
and  was  applied  by  the  natives  to  such  tombs  on  account  of  the 
resemblance  in  shape. 

(13)  In  the  few  cases  where  the  top  remains  perfect  at  Gizeh, 
the  side  ends  in  a parabolic  curve  which  turns  over  into  the  top 
surface  without  any  cornice  or  moulding ; the  tops  of  walls  in 
the  courts  of  mastabas  are  similar. 

(14)  Another  view  is  that  they  are  derived  from  the  cumulative 
mastabas,  such  as  the  so-called  step  pyramid  of  Sakkarah. 

(15)  In  the  later  pyramids;  but  the  Gizeh  pyramids  are 
entirely  built  of  Toorah  limestone. 

(16) .  Still  more  conclusive  is  the  fact  that  in  the  greatest 
of  the  pyramids  the  passages  are  such  that  it  would  have  been 
impossible  to  build  it  by  successive  coats  of  enlargement. 

(17)  In  only  one  case  (that  of  Menkara)  has  a pyramid  been 
clearly  enlarged,  and  that  was  done  at  one  step  and  not  by  many 
stages. 

(18)  The  earliest — at  Gizeh— are  very  accurate. 

(19)  These  slabs  of  pavement  do  not  extend  beneath  the 
pyramid,  but  only  around  it. 


NOTES. 


327 


(20)  Only  fragments  of  the  finest  limestone  easing  have  been 
found  ; the  variety  of  colour  was  probably  due  to  weathering. 

(21)  This  would  be  impossible  with  the  exquisitely  fine  joints 
of  the  masonry  ; a temporary  staging  of  stone  built  up  over  part 
of  the  finished  face  would  easily  allow  of  raising  the  stones. 

(22)  There  is  no  evidence  that  the  facing  block  which  covered 
the  granite  plugs  was  of  granite ; it  was  more  probably  of 
limestone. 

(23)  The  entrance  to  the  upper  passages  was  never  forced 
from  the  entrance  passage,  but  was  accidentally  found  by  the 
Arabs,  after  they  had  forced  a long  tunnel  in  the  masonry,  being 
in  ignorance  of  the  real  entrance,  which  was  probably  concealed 
by  a hinging  block  of  stone. 

(24)  Or  rather  it  rose  at  an  angle  of  23i°,  like  the  descent 
of  the  entrance  passage,  thus  making  angles  of  470  and  1 33° 
with  it. 

(25 ) This  gallery  has  obtained  a great  reputation  for  the 
fineness  of  its  joints,  perhaps  because  they  are  coarse  enough  to 
be  easily  seen  ; but  some  joints  of  the  entrance  passage,  and  the 
joints  in  the  queen's  chamber,  are  hardly  visible  with  the  closest 
inspection. 

(26)  The  only  signs  of  portcullises  are  those  in  the  vestibule 
or  antechamber. 

(27)  No  traces  of  three  of  the  portcullises  remain,  if  they  ever 
existed,  and  the  other  never  could  reach  the  floor  or  interrupt 
the  passage,  so  its  use  is  enigmatical. 

( 28 ) There  is  some  evidence  that  the  pyramid  was  opened  in 
the  early  days,  perhaps  before  the  middle  kingdom. 

(29)  Two  rows  of  beams  which  rest  on  the  side  wall  as 
corbels  or  cantilevers,  only  touching  at  the  top,  without  necessarily 
any  thrust.  Such  at  least  is  the  case  in  the  queen's  chamber, 
and  in  the  pyramid  of  Pepi,  where  such  roof  is  used. 

(30)  The  end  walls  have  sunk  throughout  a considerable 
amount,  and  the  side  walls  have  separated ; thus  all  the  beams 
of  the  upper  chambers  have  been  dragged,  and  every  beam  of 
the  roof  of  the  chamber  is  broken  through.  This  is  probably  the 
result  of  earthquakes. 

(31)  This  only  covered  the  lower  sixteen  coursers  ; the  larger 
part  above  it  was  of  limestone. 

(32)  Similar  finished  faces  may  be  seen  as  far  in  as  near  the 


328 


NOTES. 


middle  of  the  mass.  This  is  not  a true  pyramid  in  form,  but  a 
cumulative  mastaba,  the  faces  of  which  are  at  the  mastaba  angle 
(750),  and  the  successive  enlargements  of  which  are  shown  by 
numerous  finished  facings  now  within  the  masonry.  The  step 
form  is  the  result  of  carrying  upwards  the  mastaba  form,  at  the 
same  time  that  it  was  enlarged  outwards. 

(33)  Not  in  all  cases  apparently,  or  the  hieroglyphs  on  the 
passage  of  Pepi's  pyramid  are  not  injured,  as  they  would  be  if 
plugs  had  been  withdrawn. 

(34)  Pepi’s  roof  is  formed  by  a row  of  large  beams  which 
rested  independently  on  the  side  walls  as  corbels  or  cantilevers 
{see  Note  29). 

(35)  The  mastaba  angle  is  75°,  and  the  pyramid  angle  50°  to 
55°- 

(36)  Its  present  appearance  is  an  accident  of  its  demolition; 
it  was  originally,  like  the  “step-pyramid”  of  Sakkarah,  a cumu- 
lative mastaba,  as  is  shown  by  the  remains  of  the  lower  steps 
still  in  the  mounds  at  its  base,  and  by  the  mediaeval  description 
of  it. 


DT60.M41 
Egyptian  archaeology 


M?|n'ii|tMiI'|The0l09'Cal  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1 1012  00049  5806 


,/C, 


\ 


V 


x. 


